Queen of Clay tested: Iga Swiatek fights off Jacqueline Cristian scare to reach fourth round

Iga Swiatek secured a straight-sets victory in the third round of Roland Garros, maintaining an impeccable level in her title defense. The Pole has claimed the trophy in the last three editions and, for now, shows no signs of slowing down, with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Jaqueline Cristian.

The world No. 5 is advancing steadily in the tournament and has yet to concede a set. Her biggest challenge will come in the fourth round, when she faces the winner between Elena Rybakina and Jelena Ostapenko, two players who know how to defeat the Pole on clay courts, especially the Latvian, who holds a 6-0 head-to-head record against Swiatek.

First Set

The five-time Grand Slam champion quickly took control of the match. She won 12 of the first 14 points played and, in less than 10 minutes, was already leading 3-0 after securing a break to love. Cristian, for her part – making her first appearance in the third round of the French Open – managed to respond by winning her first service game, but couldn't trouble her opponent on return.

Swiatek won 90% of points on her first serve during the first set (and 70% on her second), making it almost impossible for the Romanian to maintain rallies. The world No. 60 managed to defend her service game for the second consecutive time, but then came the break from Swiatek, who closed out a comfortable 6-2 set after 43 minutes.

Second Set

In the second set, Swiatek didn't have it as easy as before. Cristian showed good resistance from the baseline and began to trouble the Pole, who was unable to land more than 50% of her first serves. It was a tense start, with both players holding serve and saving break points. By 3-3, Swiatek had already fended off six break points, while Cristian had faced only one.

The second part of the set saw a more determined Swiatek on her serve and with better chances to secure the break. The former world No. 1 kept her foot on the accelerator, and just when it seemed the set would go to a tie-break, with the score 6-5 in her favor, she managed a couple of break chances, securing the win on her second match point with a 6-2, 7-5 victory against a more than decent Cristian. Swiatek now awaits her next opponent, either Jelena Ostapenko or Elena Rybakina.

Match Statistics Cristian vs. Swiatek