Iga Świątek booked her place in the Australian Open quarterfinals with a 6-0, 6-3 drubbing of Maddison Inglis in the fourth round. After the match, the Pole spoke about frequently playing her matches during the night.
Iga Świątek’s Comments on Playing at Night at the Australian Open
Świątek dropped her first set of the tournament when Anna Kalinskaya won the second set of their match 6-1. However, the Pole produced a clinical display as she thrashed Inglis in straight sets and reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open for the third time in her career. This marks the sixth successive Major where the Pole has made it to at least the last eight.
After the match, Świątek was interviewed by Jelena Dokic and was asked about what she would do on her day off and whether she would have a crepe like she had a few days back. The Pole responded by saying that she only has that after her matches but she doesn’t have the time due to her always playing night fixtures.
“Well, I would only eat it after matches and since I’m only playing night matches suddenly, I have no time honestly. So, yeah, honestly, maybe tomorrow, but I don’t know what I’m going to do,” Świątek said.
Earlier, former World No. 1 Jim Courier stated that Świątek wanted her match to be scheduled for daytime but her request was denied.
“There was a massive battle because Świątek wanted a day match. The Australian network, which I also work for down here, desperately wanted to have an Australian playing in prime time. That’s what they pay the big money for,” Courier said.
“It was a long, drawn-out battle. I can tell you, it went to the wire. Eventually, Channel 9 got what they wanted. And what the tournament also wants. And Iga didn’t get what she wanted. But those are the backroom happenings here at tournaments like this,” he added.
Iga Świątek’s Australian Open QF
After trouncing Inglis, Świątek will next face fifth seed Elena Rybakina in the Australian Open quarterfinals. The Kazakh is yet to drop a set and booked her place in the last eight with a 6-1, 6-3 win over 21st seed Elise Mertens.
Świątek and Rybakina have locked 11 times before, with their head-to-head currently being 6-5 in the Pole’s favour. However, the Kazakh won the last time they locked horns, which was during the round robin of the WTA Finals, winning 3-6, 6-1, 6-0. Rybakina also won their only prior encounter at the Australian Open, winning 6-4, 6-4 in 2023.
Whoever out of the two comes out on top, will take on either fourth seed Amanda Anisimova or sixth seed Jessica Pegula in the semifinals of the Melbourne Major.
