Iga Swiatek may very well win Wimbledon one day, but not this year as the world No. 1 was eliminated by Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva in a brilliant match on Saturday (Yulia Putintseva) Knocked out. The Pole, who won her fifth Grand Slam title last month, dominated after the first set, but Putintseva, full of skill and tennis smarts, held off 3-6, 6-1, 6-2. After a stunning victory, her performance collapsed.
“It feels great, it feels really great,” said the world No. 35, who had won five matches in nine visits here until this year. “I just focused on playing fast and not giving her a lot of time, but it worked. That was pretty much it.
“The tactic was to play my game well and, as my coach said, stay tight at every point and that worked. I was thinking during the game that I had beaten the world number one on grass before and that also helped. .
That victory came against Naomi Osaka in Birmingham in 2019, and Putintseva arrives full of confidence after winning the title in the same city a few weeks ago, even though Swiatek has won 21 matches in a row, including her The fourth French Open title.
But the 23-year-old remains vulnerable on grass, as she has less time to prepare and others can maneuver her into positions she’s still uncomfortable with. She committed 38 unforced errors and her usually dominant game collapsed.
Even though Swiatek had won all four of her previous matches, Putintseva has been performing well, avoiding the dreaded bagels and breadsticks that so many have had to take from Swiatek over the past few years because She dominates the women’s tour. At 5-foot-4, the Kazakh is one of the shortest players on tour, but her speed, stability and versatility make her a tough opponent to beat when competing.
The first set went according to script, but things changed at the start of the second set. In the first set, Putintseva adjusted her return position and won Swiatek’s serve early, missing her favorite time. Suddenly, the 29-year-old was taking control of the match, hitting the ball hard and straight and taking full advantage of the grass.
An early break gave her a 3-1 lead in the second set, but Swiatek’s game began to lose steam and her second serve was surprisingly fragile. Although Swiatek performed well from the baseline, she still looked to the sea from the tee, lacking the soft touch that Putintseva displayed on the court. When Putintseva got a chance, she hit the ball with her baseline.
The second set disappeared in a blur, prompting Swiatek to take a long break in the bathroom before the start of the third set. But that didn’t change the momentum or stop her racquet errors. Putintseva scored 14 of the first 16 points to lead 4-0, but Swiatek eventually stopped the decline and held her serve.
On Swiatek’s serve, Putintseva led 5-1, 40-40, two points away from victory. Swiatek had just held serve before saving two match points with an audacious break. A beautiful lob gave Putintseva a third match point, and the game was over when Swiatek backhanded the ball into the net.
Elina Svitolina made an emotional semi-final last year and the Ukrainian again advanced to the last 16 after beating Ons Jabeur, runner-up the past two years. Svitolina fought hard in the first set, and although Jabr had a set point in the second set, Svitolina mustered up the courage to seal the victory 6-1, 7-6 (4).
“The second set was very tense. I was trying to stay focused and, of course, I was relieved to win the tiebreak,” Svitolina said. .
“Tie-breaks are always a bit like buying tickets. It’s not always easy to play against a champion like Once, she’s played two finals here and she’s very tricky on grass. I played great tennis. I played against I’m really happy with how I handled some of the tough moments.
Svitolina, who now plays China’s Wang Xinyu, was supported in the crowd by her husband Gael Monfils, who lost to Grigor Dimitr in Friday’s singles match Love. “This is a little different for our family,” Svitolina said. “But Gregor’s performance was unbelievable and I was inspired by his performance yesterday. But having Gael here to support me and be with me is special.
