Iga Swiatek breaks Wimbledon semifinal barrier, proving too strong for Liudmila Samsonova

Iga Swiatek advanced to the semifinals after a notable victory 6-2, 7-5 over Liudmila Samsonova in the Wimbledon quarterfinals. The Pole had an impressive first set and then had to overcome an improved Samsonova to secure the win in straight sets.

The 5-time Grand Slam champion reaches the semifinals at the All England Club for the first time in her career, marking her 9th appearance at this stage of a Grand Slam. So far, she has fallen in the same round at the Australian Open and Roland Garros. She will seek to reach another major final against the winner of the match between Belinda Bencic and Mirra Andreeva.

First Set

The match began with a determined Samsonova eager to fight for the victory, starting with a break opportunity in the first game, which she failed to convert. Things remained even on serve initially, reaching 2-2 without issues.

It was then that Swiatek began to assert herself in the rallies with her forehand, despite not getting too many easy points from her serve – she only had a 42% first-serve percentage in the set. The 5-time Grand Slam champion capitalized on her opportunities and secured two consecutive breaks – on the only opportunities she had – to go on a game streak that gave her the set 6-2. The Russian had committed 18 unforced errors, compared to just 8 for Swiatek.

Second Set

Everything seemed to be going Swiatek’s way; she appeared superior in play and gave her opponent no chances. At the start of the second set, she secured a break to love and then saved up to 4 break points against her before going up 3-0. The Pole had won 7 consecutive games, and Samsonova seemed lost against Swiatek's play. However, things would reverse when Samsonova secured her first break of the match, bringing her back into contention at 2-3.

Both players exchanged breaks mid-set, and Samsonova fought back from behind to level the score at 5-5 on her serve, while Swiatek appeared to lose concentration. The Pole received her first time violation as she prepared to serve and seemed somewhat distracted, committing a couple of unforced errors uncharacteristic of her. She managed to come back from 0-30 and gained momentum towards the end, securing a break in the next game to close out the victory 6-2, 7-5.

The match became more complicated in the second set, where Swiatek conceded her serve twice consecutively and committed too many unforced errors. Nevertheless, the world No. 4 showed her class under pressure and ultimately secured a confidence-boosting victory to reach the semifinals for the first time at SW19. Her next opponent will be the winner between Belinda Bencic and the 7th seed Mirra Andreeva.

Match Statistics Swiatek vs. Samsonova