The second edition of the WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia began with the familiar sight of Iga Swiatek brutally laying waste another of the best players in the world. The six-time grand slam champion demolished Madison Keys 6-1, 6-2 in their first match of the group stage.
Swiatek had been struggling in recent tournaments, fatigue seemingly setting in at the end of a draining 10-month season. However, the Pole had three weeks to regroup after her 6-1, 6-2 loss to Jasmine Paolini in the quarter-finals of the Wuhan Open. She looked fresh and locked in from the beginning, affirming her status as one of the favourites alongside Aryna Sabalenka, the world No 1, by serving extremely well and putting Keys under relentless pressure off both wings with her weight of shot and defence while offering few mistakes.
This one-sided result, however, also said much about Keys†lack of preparation for a tournament composed of the eight best in the world, with no opportunity to ease into the early rounds and gradually regain rhythm, as is the case in most regular knockout tournaments.
Keys†season had started with an incredible win over Swiatek in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, where she saved a match point en-route to her long-awaited maiden grand slam title. The American struggled to find her best form after that and then suffered a wrist injury that has forced her off the tour since losing in the opening round of the US Open.
The 30-year-old could not have asked for a tougher opponent on her return. Constantly forced into difficult positions on the court with no time on the ball, Keys sprayed errors freely as she tried to wrestle control of the points. Despite her enormous serve, she held twice. Keys ended the match with eight winners compared with 38 unforced errors.
Madison Keys was playing her first match since losing in the first round of the US Open. Photograph: Stéphanie Lecocq/Reuters
This staging marks the second year of the Womenâ€s Tennis Associationâ€s three-year deal in Saudi Arabia and Swiatek should feel comforted by the lack of drama surrounding her this time. Her only WTA Finals title run came in Cancún two years ago, a tournament held during hurricane season in dire weather conditions and at a time when the event moved between countries each year.
Last year, Swiatek lost in the group stage weeks after being informed she had tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine. She was cleared of any deliberate wrongdoing, after proving that her melatonin medication had been contaminated.
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Now she has the benefit of simply focusing on her tennis. While the WTA has tried to divert attention to its hopes of helping to spotlight womenâ€s issues in Saudi Arabia, as is the case with all sporting events held there, the financial incentives are the most pressing reason for its presence. Swiatek and her rivals will be handsomely rewarded for their efforts.
An undefeated champion would depart with $5.235m (£3.98m), the highest prize money purse in the history of womenâ€s sport and second only to the $6m offered to Jannik Sinner last month as the winner of the Six Kings Slam exhibition event.
Having earned $42,945,490 at just 24, Swiatek recently leapfrogged Venus Williams as the second-highest prize money earner in womenâ€s tennis, where she trails only Serena Williams. On the evidence of this performance, the figures in her bank account will only continue to rise.
Amanda Anisimova (right) congratulates Elena Rybakina on her 6-3, 6-1 victory. Photograph: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images for WTA
Later on Saturday, Elena Rybakina continued her excellent form by easing past the fourth seed, Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 6-1. Rybakina, the sixth seed, had been among the final group of players to qualify for Riyadh, by winning in Ningbo, China, last month. She backed up her imperious serving performance with controlled, relentless shotmaking to clear her first hurdle without problem.
The victorious Swiatek and Rybakina will resume their rivalry on Monday in the second slate of matches in the Serena Williams group, while Anisimova will play Keys in a must-win match for both. On Sunday, the Stefanie Graf group will begin with Sabalenka facing Paolini and Coco Gauff opening her title defence against her American compatriot Jessica Pegula.
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