Dubai: Iga Swiatek puts rain delay aside, destroys Victoria Azarenka in opener

Iga Swiatek didn’t allow persistent rain delays to negatively impact her at all as the world No. 2 destroyed two-time Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka 6-0 6-2 in her Dubai opener. After a first-round bye, the Pole saw her opening match in Dubai – scheduled for Tuesday – push back a couple of hours due…

Iga Swiatek didn’t allow persistent rain delays to negatively impact her at all as the world No. 2 destroyed two-time Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka 6-0 6-2 in her Dubai opener.

After a first-round bye, the Pole saw her opening match in Dubai – scheduled for Tuesday – push back a couple of hours due to rain that just wasn’t going away.

But when the five-time Grand Slam champion finally got to the court, she bageled former world No. 1 Azarenka in the first set.

Swiatek’s run also continued at the start of the second set, winning the first two games.

In the third game, the Belarusian managed to get the break back but also finally get on the board.

However, it didn’t change anything as the Polish tennis star collected another breaks in the fourth and eighth games to complete her dominant win in an hour and 15 minutes of play.

In the Dubai round-of-16, the No. 2 seed will play against Dayana Yastremska.
Swiatek showed respect for Azarenka after the win

The 34th-ranked Belarusian may be past her prime but the Pole still remembers how good of a player she once used to be.

“She’s a legend. I have so much respect for her. Her career is outstanding. She’s still playing super good,” the 23-year-old said of the 35-year-old.

Iga Swiatek had kind words for Victoria Azarenka after beating her in Dubai:

“She’s a legend. I have so much respect for her. Her career is outstanding. She’s still playing super good.” ❤️