Tennis: Swiatek enjoys 66-minute victory over Golubic to make Toronto last 16

Toronto, Aug 6 (IANS) No. 7 seed Iga Swiatek conceded just three games on her way to a commanding victory in the Canadian Open, out-performing Viktorija Golubic in the third round on Thursday.

The Polish former World No.1, a semifinalist in the event in 2023, advanced to the fourth round, beating Golubic 6-2, 6-1 in 66 minutes.

Golubic occupies a rare place in Swiatek’s career lore: she’s the only player who has ever defeated the Pole in the first round of a Grand Slam. But that was back at Wimbledon 2019, when Swiatek was just 18 years old. The former World No. 1 has not lost to Golubic in three matches since, and conceded just five games to her in their last two encounters.

“For sure it was a good day, and I’m really happy with the way I played,” Swiatek said in her on-court interview. “Even though the first game wasn’t super smooth, I knew I could start from the beginning, and then it went my way, and I could find my rhythm.”

Swiatek will next face either No. 10 seed Marta Kostyuk or No. 19 seed Madison Keys as she bids to reach her second quarterfinal in Canada.

Eala powers into third round

Meanwhile, Alexandra Eala continued her impressive run in the North American hard-court circuit as the No. 25 seed defeated Alycia Parks 6-1, 4-6, 6-2 to reach the third round in Toronto.

Fresh off capturing her first singles title on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz at the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington on Monday, the 20-year-old Filipina needed just two days to switch venues and return to winning ways in her Toronto debut.

Eala dominated the opening set, reeling off five consecutive games from 1-1 to take it 6-1. She did not face a break point on serve during the set and consistently pressured Parks from the baseline.

Parks responded in the second set. After surviving two difficult service games early, the American saved four break points to hold for a 3-2 lead. She then broke in the 10th game to claim the set 6-4 and force a decider.

After the players traded early breaks in the third set, Eala secured the decisive break in the fifth game to move ahead 3-2. She maintained control from there, winning the next three games to complete the victory in 1 hour, 51 minutes.

–IANS

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