Swiatek Celebrates Birthday with Emphatic French Open Victory

World number one Iga Swiatek celebrated her 23rd birthday in style with an emphatic 6-4 6-2 victory over Marie Bouzkova to move into the last 16 at the French Open on May 31.

Swiatek, who is seeking her second French Open title, survived a major scare in the previous round when she saved a match point against Naomi Osaka before sealing a hard-fought victory. However, against Bouzkova, she picked apart the Czech player's serve with some precision hitting.

The defending champion showed no signs of a hangover from the three-setter with Osaka and consolidated an early break to go 3-1 up in the opening set. Bouzkova fought back from 5-2 down to give the Pole a workout, but Swiatek switched gears and carefully constructed her points, using the angles well to make Bouzkova run from one corner of Court Philippe-Chatrier to the other, firing 18 winners in total in the opening set.

The top seed continued to dominate in the second set as she effortlessly turned defense into offense on Bouzkova's serve, breaking twice to race into a 4-0 lead before the Czech managed to get on the board. Bouzkova saved a match point on her serve, but she only delayed the inevitable as Swiatek sealed progress with a searing winner down the line.

Swiatek's victory extends her winning streak to 32 matches, the longest on the WTA Tour since Serena Williams won 34 consecutive matches in 2013. The Pole is now just two wins away from equaling Venus Williams' record of 35 consecutive wins, set in 2000.

Swiatek will face Jessica Pegula in the fourth round, a player she has defeated in their last three meetings. Pegula, the eighth seed, advanced to the last 16 with a 6-3 6-2 victory over Tamara Zidansek.

Tags: #FrenchOpen#IgaSwiatek#MarieBouzkova#Tennis#WTA