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Swiatek continues one-sided procession to Australian Open semis
John Salvado, AAP • January 23rd, 2025 9:00 am
Photo: AAP
Second-seeded Iga Swiatek has continued her imperious march into the Australian Open semi-finals with a controversial 6-1 6-2 drubbing of American Emma Navarro.
The Polish superstar has now dropped just 14 games in her opening five matches at Melbourne - and a mere seven in the last four - en route to a semi-final showdown with another American, Madison Keys.
Earlier on Wednesday, Keys was made to work much harder in her quarter-final, coming back from a set down to oust Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 3-6 6-3 6-4 in a high-quality affair involving only one service break in each set.
But if Keys is to go any further in the tournament she will need to go to a whole new level against Swiatek.
The 23-year-old world No.2 already has five major titles to her name, although she has never gone further than the last four at Melbourne Park in six previous attempts.
There was a controversial moment in the fifth game of the second set when Swiatek chased down a drop shot on game point.
Navarro complained to the chair umpire that the ball had bounced twice before the Pole hit it - which a video replay showed to have happened - but as the American did not stop mid-point, her appeal fell on deaf ears.
Swiatek was unsure at the time if it was a double bounce or she had framed the ball.
"I was fully sprinting and I don't remember even seeing the contact point," she said.
Madison Keys I Photo: AAP
"Sometimes you don't really look when you hit the ball."
Navarro placed no blame on Swiatek, but felt she should have been able to challenge the ruling after the point was over.
Swiatek went on to win the game and the next three to close out the victory in one hour and 29 minutes.
"I think it was much tougher than the score says," she said.
"Emma is a fighter. I knew she's not going to pull back.
"I wanted to stay focused until the end and keep my intensity."
In sharp contrast to Swiatek's one-sided procession to the last four, No.8 seed Navarro was taken to three sets in each of her first four encounters, the first time that had happened at the Open since Jelena Dokic was also stretched to the limit in 2009.
The 29-year-old Keys held sway when it mattered most against Svitolina, the No.28 seed.
"I felt like I had to start playing a little bit more aggressively and try to get to the net a bit quicker," the 19th-seeded Keys said in her on-court interview.
"She was controlling a lot of the points and making me run so I felt like I needed to try and get on the advantage a little bit quicker and luckily I was able to do that."
Keys' best result at a major was reaching the final of the 2017 US Open, while she also advanced to the last four at Melbourne Park in 2015 and again in 2022 - which she lost to eventual champion Ash Barty.
