Iga Swiatek still has a long way to go to master the art of grasscourt tennis but on Tuesday the Pole took the first step towards what she hopes will be a triumphant run at Wimbledon as she beat Polina Kudermetova 7-5 6-1 in the first round.
Facing a Wimbledon debutant, the five-times Grand Slam champion might have hoped for an easy ride as no doubt she would liked to have escaped the Court 2 furnace as quickly as possible with the temperature soaring above 33 degrees Celsius.
Despite being a grasscourt novice, Russia’s Kudermetova refused to be overawed by the occasion, or her opponent, as she went toe-to-toe from the baseline with Swiatek for 45 minutes.
It was not the kind of first-round trial Swiatek would have wanted as she bids to improve her rather mediocre record at the All England Club, which remains the only major where she has not contested at least a semi-final.
It was not until the penultimate point of the opening set that Swiatek earned her first break point, which the eighth seed duly converted when Kudermetova netted a backhand to surrender the set.
That blow effectively snuffed out the 22-year-old Russian’s hopes of winning a match at a Grand Slam for the first time as her tactics fell apart in the second.
While Kudermetova had kept Swiatek second-guessing her game-plan for the duration of the 45-minute opening set, the former world number one raced through the second in 24 minutes, securing the victory with a sizzling backhand winner.
“I’m glad my game clicked in the second set and am glad some fans came to see us today as it’s so hot,” Swiatek told the crowd after setting up a second–round meeting with American Caty McNally.
EMPTY SEATS
With many ticket holders deciding they could not tolerate the scorching heat inside the bowl-like arena, Swiatek and Kudermetova were greeted by a mass of empty green seats when they entered the sparsely-filled Court 2.
Many of those who braved the sweltering conditions tried to keep cool by using paper or battery-operated fans. But even holding those for long with sweaty palms was a challenge.
It was not just the spectators who were left hot and bothered as the mass of towels that started piling up next to Swiatek’s chair told its own story.
But having reached her first grasscourt final last week at Bad Homburg, Swiatek was eager to make sure all the groundwork for Wimbledon would not be in vain.
Two aces in the opening game suggested she might get off court in double quick time but when Kudermetova earned the first break point of the match in the fifth game, Swiatek realised her 64th-ranked opponent would be no pushover.
A Kudermetova unforced error handed Swiatek a lucky escape and by the time the four-times Roland Garros champion bagged the first set, the stats showed she had been outplayed in a number of areas, including total winners and first serve points won.
Yet with the momentum of claiming the first set behind her, it was not long before Swiatek was celebrating winning her 62nd consecutive opening match on the tour.
“I needed some time to adjust to the grass because it’s different than Bad Homburg,” said Swiatek, who turned up for the match after enduring a sleepless night due to the hot weather.
“The heat is going to be over tomorrow, so I survived it,” she added with a smile.
(Reuters)