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01/21/25 10:47:00
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01/21 22:45 CST Australian Open: Iga Swiatek overwhelms Emma Navarro and will
face Madison Keys in the semifinals
Australian Open: Iga Swiatek overwhelms Emma Navarro and will face Madison Keys
in the semifinals
By HOWARD FENDRICH
AP Tennis Writer
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) --- Iga Swiatek's latest lopsided win at the
Australian Open came via a 6-1, 6-2 score in the quarterfinals against No. 8
seed Emma Navarro on Wednesday.
The No. 2-seeded Swiatek not only has not dropped a set so far in the
tournament, but also has lost a grand total of only 14 games as she seeks her
first title at Melbourne Park and sixth Grand Slam trophy overall. The last
woman to make it to the Australian Open semifinals having ceded fewer than 15
games was Maria Sharapova back in 2013.
"I'm really happy with the tournament overall," said Swiatek, who will face No.
19 Madison Keys of the U.S. on Thursday night for a berth in the final. "Being
in the semis is great. I'll push for more."
Swiatek benefited from what appeared to be a missed double-bounce on a point
she won in the second set, but Navarro did not immediately ask for a video
review. Either way, Swiatek's dominance was pretty clear, even if she was
modest about things afterward.
"Well, I think it was much more tougher than the score says," said Swiatek, a
23-year-old from Poland. "Emma's a fighter ... and I wanted to stay focused and
keep my intensity."
The other women's semifinal is No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, the two-time defending
champion, against her good friend, No. 11 Paula Badosa.
Keys, whose best showing at a major was getting to the title match at the 2017
U.S. Open, was a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 winner against Elina Svitolina and is into her
third semifinal in Australia.
"Madison is a great player and experienced, so you never know," said Swiatek,
who is 4-1 against the 29-year-old Keys. "I'll be just focused on myself."
Using a new racket this season, Keys is on a 10-match winning streak, including
a title at a hard-court tuneup event in Adelaide. Her run to the semifinals in
Melbourne includes victories over two past runners-up at the Australian Open,
Danielle Collins and Elina Rybakina.
Keys' past losses in the semifinals in Melbourne came against eventual
champions Serena Williams in 2015 and Ash Barty in 2022.
"I think I play a little bit smarter for sure ... probably a little bit less
fearless," Keys said.
Svitolina, a three-time Slam semifinalist, was in control during the first set.
But Keys made some tactical adjustments, including looking for more
opportunities to get to the net. She won 23 of the 26 points when she moved
forward and ended up with a total of 49 winners, 23 on her powerful forehand
side.
The one difficulty Keys had was getting going in her return games. But she
finally converted her seventh break chance to lead 4-2 in the second set.
"Iga is tough to beat, because she has a lot of spin, kind of naturally, on
both sides. She's a good server. She's a good returner. She moves incredibly
well," Keys said, looking ahead to Thursday. "The biggest thing that makes her
so difficult to beat is, because she moves so well, if you miss your spot just
slightly, she has enough time to recover, and then the point goes back to
neutral."
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AP Sports Writer John Pye in Brisbane, Australia, contributed.
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More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
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