Dubai Duty Free Championships: Iga Swiatek demolishes Liudmila Samsonova to reach last eight

World No 1 Iga Swiatek has now lost just eight games in 10 sets following another flawless performance at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships to reach the quarter-finals; Swiatek is now 35-0 at WTA 1000 events after winning the first set

Wednesday 22 February 2023 17:04, UK

Iga Swiatek continued her domination of the WTA tour by smashing Liudmila Samsonova 6-1 6-0 in 75 minutes to reach the quarter-finals in Dubai.

Swiatek dropped only a single game en route to another emphatic win - finishing with 18 winners to just six unforced errors.

The Polish world No 1 will take on former Dubai finalist Karolina Pliskova in Thursday's quarter-finals.

Pliskova became the first of seven former finalists in Dubai to reach the quarter-finals with a 7-5 6-7 (6-8) 6-2 defeat of Anhelina Kalinina.

The Czech reaches the last eight of the competition for the fifth time and first since 2020.

Swiatek won their only previous meeting against Pliskova - a 6-0 6-0 demolition at the 2021 Rome final.

Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka ended the hopes of defending champion Jelena Ostapenko 2-6 6-1 6-1 to continue her amazing winning streak.

Victory helped Sabalenka become the first female player to win her first 13 matches of the year since Serena Williams in 2015, who started the year with 24 consecutive wins.

Coco Gauff and Madison Keys will also face off in an all-American quarter-final clash.

Gauff advanced after Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina withdrew from their scheduled match due to a lower back injury.

Keys booked her spot in the next round with a 6-2 6-1 win over Victoria Azarenka with the former US Open finalist needing just 57 minutes to claim her maiden victory over the Belarusian.