Tears from Iga Swiatek despite losing just three games against Angelique Kerber, broad smiles from Aryna Sabalenka despite winning just three games against Elena Rybakina. With a week to go before the Australian Open, it was a day of contrasting emotions for the world’s top two; a day when one outstanding winning streak was extended and another came juddering to a halt.
In Sydney, Swiatek claimed a 16th straight victory, defeating Angelique Kerber 6-3, 6-0 to give Poland an early lead in the United Cup final against Germany. It was another powerhouse performance from the 22-year-old, who dropped just one set in five singles matches at the mixed-team event, yet her joy proved short-lived.
One year after a semi-final loss to Jessica Pegula left Swiatek overwhelmed with emotion, the tournament once again ended in heartbreak for the world No 1. First, Hubert Hurkacz missed two match points in a 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (8-6), 6-4 defeat to Alexander Zverev. Then, with the tie level, Swiatek partnered Hurkacz in a 6-4, 5-7, 10-4 loss against Zverev and Laura Siegemund in the decisive mixed doubles rubber.
As the German team celebrated a second dramatic comeback in 24 hours, following Saturday’s thrilling late-night win over Australia, Swiatek sat with a towel draped over her head, momentarily alone with her thoughts. Happily, she quickly put the disappointment behind her.
“I’m glad that we don’t have super tiebreaks in singles,” quipped the Pole, who quickly corrected herself after inadvertently revealing a little too much information about her plans for a brief break before heading to Melbourne for the season’s first major.
“I will have, I think, two days off and I will spend them here on Bondi beach,” said the Pole, before adding with a smile: “Maybe I shouldn’t tell that, because now I’m going to have some stalkers there…I’m not going to be on Bondi beach.”
There were smiles too in Brisbane, where Sabalenka could only laugh as a near-perfect performance from Rybakina brought her 15-match winning streak on Australian soil to an end. For 38 minutes, the Belarusian was effectively reduced to the role of bystander by the woman she defeated to win her first major title at last year’s Australian Open. That was all the time it took for Rybakina, whose five victories this week spanned a combined total of just four hours and 52 minutes, to reel off the first eight games.
When Sabalenka finally broke in the ninth to make a belated impression on the scoreboard, she raised her arms aloft and blew a kiss heavenwards. The match was an hour old before Sabalenka held serve for the first time, and there was an air of inevitability about the outcome long before a final missed forehand brought confirmation of her 6-0, 6-3 defeat. Blown away in an hour and 12 minutes, she could only laugh.
“Elena, woah,” Sabalenka exclaimed, addressing her rival in her on-court speech. “That was an interesting match. Great job, thank you for those three games, at least we made it look like a fight.”
Rybakina, whose 19 winners included seven aces, was characteristically self-effacing in victory.
“I think the score doesn’t show the reality, because all the games were quite tight, to be honest,” she said. “In a couple of moments, maybe I was a bit luckier.”
In truth, luck had less to do with it than the outstanding returning that limited Sabalenka to just 35% of her second serve points, the dozen unforced errors committed by the Belarusian, and the improvements Rybakina has made to her serve and net game. Rybakina, who intends to play in Adelaide next week as she seeks to consolidate her fitness after suffering from illness before the tournament, will rise to No 3 on Monday, matching her career-best ranking.
Coco Gauff, who will drop to fourth as a result, also made a winning start to the year, claiming the seventh title of her career with a 6-7 (4-7), 6-3, 6-3 victory over Elina Svitolina in Auckland. It was a first successful title defence for the 19-year-old US Open champion, who has won all but four of her last 33 singles matches.
“I think today, level-wise, was definitely not my best match or best level this week,” said Gauff, who dropped just 15 games across the previous four rounds. “But sometimes when you win when you’re not playing your best, it makes you feel more satisfied.”