#WTA 2023: Barbora Krejcikova tops Iga Swiatek in Dubai finals
Former French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova basically swarmed all over World Number one Iga Swiatek for 90 minutes in Dubai to win her first WTA 1000 title, 6-4, 6-2.
How could this be?
Coming into the match, though Swiatek had a slight lead in their head-to-head meetings, 2-1, and their recent duels going the distance — it only showed how evenly matched they could be whenever they face off.…
and she's not defending ANYTHING for the next few months because of last years injury...and arguably clay is her best surface...taking bets on how long til she's top 5 again
AO WD F: Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova [1] def. Shuko Aoyama/Ena Shibahara [10] 6-4, 6-3 Match Recap
🎥 Wide World of Sports Australia
The women's doubles finals of the Australian Open tested the tenth seeds, Shuko Aoyama/Ena Shibahara, against the first seeds Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, who once again "flew their way" to the finals. Once again, this exciting match boiled down to the combination between the pressure points handling, the return depth, and the pace maintenance.
The match started with an 18-shot rally, where Siniakova executed a working volley to close the point, which game ended with an early break for the Czech pair. Their unpredictable shot-making, sometimes, would leave the opponents' guessing, and it showed in their deep returns in the first set. They survived a break point coming from Aoyama's smash, but they eventually held that game after another volley. Without ever looking back, Krejcikova/Siniakova had strong serves to close the first set 6-4, with a one-two-punch shot and an unreturned serve as the 2 closing points.
The middle of the second set might have given Krejcikova/Siniakova some pressure, but they eventually got off with it. First, Siniakova's volley at the net successfully secured them a break point at 0-0* 30-40 before they eventually broke a game later. However, Siniakova's shot misfire paved a way for the Japanese pair to break back, where they ultimately did to level 2-2 at the expense of Krejcikova's forehand error. The momentum shift was averted three games later with a stellar net game from Siniakova to open the moment before Krejcikova's forehand winner confirmed the break at 4-3.
They did not need to serve for the match: instead, they created more opportunities to close the match in the pressure points. After saving 2 game points from Aoyama/Shibahara, Siniakova pulled a working volley to secure the match point, before their return game made Shibahara misfire her forehand. As a result, they took the second set 6-3 and won the women's doubles title at the end of the day.
This title marked Krejcikova/Siniakova's fitth Grand Slam doubles titles together in the span of 2 years, seventh overall. Four titles were won in the past 12 months alone, except Roland Garros 2022, where Krejcikova was tested positive for COVID-19. Definitely a legendary pair already in the making.
Barbora Krejcikova is a Czech tennis player. Winner of French Open Women Singles in 2021 and current World No. 2, she has been a successful doubles player as well. She has won 7 Grand Slams in Doubles (4 in Women Doubles and 3 in Mixed Doubles) and a Gold Medal in Tokyo Olympics last year. She is a former world No. 1 in the category and current No. 2. Krejčíková was a highly-ranked junior player…