Swiatek beats Samsonova in Beijing to win fifth title of 2023

BEIJING — World No. 2 Iga Swiatek won her tour title of the season, defeating No. 22 Lyudmila Samsonova 6-2, 6-2 in Sunday’s final. The fifth championship leading the competition, a perfect completion of the China Open debut.

With the win, Swiatek became the first player since Serena Williams to win five or more titles in back-to-back seasons, with the American doing so in 2014 and 2015. One achievement.

The Beijing Olympics is Swiatek’s 16th career title, having previously won at Roland Garros, Doha, Stuttgart and Warsaw in 2023. She lost only one set in the match. It was also her sixth WTA 1000 title, making her the only player to win six or more WTA 1000 titles before turning 23, surpassing Caroline Wozniacki’s five.

Swiatek played in her seventh final of the season on Sunday, beating Samsonova 3-0. Swiatek lost just one match to Samsonova on Dubai hard courts earlier this season.

Samsonova earned her third top-10 finish of the year with a semifinal victory over fifth-ranked Elena Rybakina to book her second spot in the WTA 1000 final of the season . Her trip to Beijing will ensure a return to the top 20 on Monday. But her efforts throughout the week, which included wins over Jelena Ostapenko, Petra Kvitova and Marta Kostyuk, left the 24-year-old lacking energy.

On a cool night in Beijing, Swiatek took advantage of the slower conditions to neutralize Samsonova’s power. After five meetings, Samsonova double faulted on the first break point of the match to give Swiatek the lead. Swiatek responded by continuing to narrow the field against Samsonova, making zero unforced errors in the first set and breaking serve again to seal the lead.

In the semi-finals against US Open champion Coco Gauff, the Pole did not face a single break point and Swiatek’s serve once again proved his dominance. She faced no break points against Samsonova and sealed her match from the baseline by playing rhythmic, aggressive tennis. After breaking Samsonova’s 3-1 lead in the second set, Swiatek won a key hold at 30-all, extending the lead to 4-1.

Swiatek earned her first match point with a perfect forehand pass and won it in the 69th minute after Samsonova’s lob found the net.

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