Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek had faced each other 14 times heading into the 2025 Madrid Open semifinals. Swiatek had dominated the rivalry 11-3. Moreover, Gauff had yet to win a set on clay against the Pole. Swiatek's best surface is clay, so another smashing of Gauff seemed likely.
Not so fast. In the first set of the semis, Gauff used immense pace and brilliant placement to get three breaks of the WTA No. 2. Swiatek seemed powerless to beat an opponent who was in the proverbial zone.
Gauff has always been a player who can defend well. She chases down balls most mortals cannot, and the relative slowness of a clay court makes it easier. The issue is that her bombastic forehand and backhand do not have the same speed as on hard courts. That was not an issue on Thursday, though. Swiatek was seemingly always backpedaling.
Coco Gauff sweeps by Iga Swiatek at the Madrid Open
The second set was no different. Gauff broke Swiatek twice more to lead 4-0 and needed to hold serve to take the match easily. Even the crowd appeared to lose any hope that Swiatek could come close to competing. There was little noise made, and hardly any reaction, even when Swiatek rarely did something well.
The loss could also be compounded for Swiatek. She still ranks second on the WTA tour, but is far away from top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka. Worse, Gauff is closing in on Swiatek's points. The Pole has so many to defend through the French Open, and her form is poor, at least compared to how good she is typically.
She has yet to win an event this year. Gauff has also now defeated her three straight times, including annihilating Swiatek 6-1 6-1 at the 2025 Madrid Open. A change appears to be happening in women's tennis, and that is not a good thing for Iga Swiatek.