On a drizzly day in Paris, the magnitude of the challenge facing Iga Swiatek’s French Open rivals was laid bare. In another of the great escapes that are fast becoming her trademark, the Polish world No 1 saved a match point against an inspired Naomi Osaka to prevail in a spellbinding three-hour struggle beneath the roof of Court Philippe Chatrier.
It was the second time in a matter of weeks that Swiatek has come back from the brink, following her epic recovery from three championship points down against Aryna Sabalenka in Madrid earlier this month, and the victory extends her unbeaten run at Roland Garros to 16 matches.
The 22-year-old is fast acquiring an almost Nadal-like aura of invincibility on the Parisian clay and yet, for much of her 7-6 (7-1), 1-6, 7-5 victory over Osaka, she appeared as vulnerable as she ever has on the court where three of her four grand slam titles have come.
The key to that paradox was a performance of extraordinary quality and conviction from Osaka, a hard-court specialist for whom clay has hitherto been something of an unsolved mystery. The 26-year-old, who returned to competition at the start of the year after giving birth last summer, has recently shown signs of improvement on the surface, defeating Daria Kasatkina, a former French Open semi-finalist, en route to the last 16 in Rome just over a fortnight ago.
Yet neither that run, nor the occasional glimpses Osaka has offered of the quality that propelled her to four grand slam titles and the world No 1 ranking, could have prepared Swiatek for the sustained barrage of power tennis that carried Osaka within a whisker of a historic upset.
“She surprised me, because even she says that she’s not playing the best tennis on clay,” said Swiatek. “I’m not expecting anything before matches, but her shots were really clean and really heavy today, and I think on these courts in Paris, they are faster. It’s probably the fastest clay.
“These clay courts are the most similar to hard courts, and I think she also used that today, and for sure I think she improved her game. But I also felt like she could play really with no pressure, no expectations, and that’s what gave her an extra positive kick, I guess.”
Striking the ball with the deadly power and authority of old, a fist-pumping, thigh-slapping Osaka certainly gave the impression she was enjoying herself. It took her a few games to come to terms with Swiatek’s spin and ability to create angles from central positions. On more than occasion in the early stages, she looked awkward and uncomfortable moving in and out of the corners. But having retrieved an early break, Osaka began to find her range, dominating behind her heavy serve, crushing her returns and balancing aggression with patience in the baseline exchanges.
With the pressure building, Swiatek was obliged to fend off a set point against her serve at 4-5. When she dominated the ensuing tiebreak, however, the natural assumption was that she would go on to stretch her lead in signature fashion. Instead, it was Osaka who began to run away with the contest, winning 11 of the next 13 games to establish a seemingly unassailable lead.
It might have got even better for Osaka, who drilled a backhand into the net tape with Swiatek stranded as the Pole stood break point down at 1-4 in the decider. It was effectively a match point, given that a double break at that stage would surely have been terminal for the defending champion. But Swiatek held to stay in touch, and at 5-4 Osaka missed another backhand, the time on an actual match point. Two more backhand errors followed, and with parity restored, Swiatek went on to claim another famous victory.
“I cried when I got off the court,” said Osaka. “But then I kind of realised I was watching Iga win this tournament last year and I was pregnant. It was just my dream to be able to play her. When I think of it like that, I think I’m doing pretty well.
“I am also just trying not to be too hard on myself. I feel like I played her on her better surface. I’m a hard-court kid, so I would love to play her on my surface and see what happens.”
TV cameras also captured pictures of Swiatek in tears as she warmed down afterwards, perhaps unsurprisingly given her emotionally charged appeal to the Parisian public during an on-court interview with Alex Corretja.
“I want to say one thing,” Swiatek told the crowd. “I’m sorry even to bring [it] up. I have huge respect for you guys, and I know that we’re playing basically for you, because this is entertainment, and we’re also earning money because of you.
“But sometimes under a lot of pressure, when you scream something during the rally or right before the return, it’s really, really hard to be focused. I usually don’t bring this up because I want to be this kind of player that is in the zone and really focused.
“But guys, this is serious for us, we are fighting our whole lives to be better and better. Sometimes it’s just hard to accept that.
“Please guys, if you can support us between the rallies but not during, that would be really, really amazing.”
It was an impassioned plea, one that Swiatek later explained was occasioned by a fan who cried out as she lined up a drive volley late in the decider. Yet the reality is that it will take more than a few overexuberant fans to stop her now.
Swiatek has shown, once again, that she has the mental resilience to cope with even the toughest situations. Everyone who faces the defending champion from here will be aware that the final point is the toughest one to win.