French Open title; year-end number one: Iga Swiatek in 2023
World number one Iga Swiatek stamped her authority on the WTA Tour in 2023. The Polish star went on to win six titles, a run that included a record-breaking French Open honor. Swiatek finished the year with the WTA Finals title, winning it without dropping a set. She then became the year-end number one for the second successive season. Here are the key stats.
Her wins and titles in 2023
As mentioned, Swiatek claimed as many as six titles in 2023. She finished with a win-loss record of 68-11. At the Australian Open, the Polish star lost in the fourth round to Elena Rybakina. The former's first title came at the Qatar Ladies Open. A look at her other titles this year - Stuttgart Open, French Open, Poland Open, China Open, and WTA Finals.
A second successive French Open title
Swiatek reigned supreme after beating Karolina Muchova to win the 2023 French Open. She won the match in three sets (6-2, 5-7, 6-4). Swiatek claimed her second successive Roland Garros honor and a third in total. Her only other major title came at the US Open in 2022. Swiatek now owns a 28-2 win-loss record at Roland Garros.
Consecutive Roland Garros titles
Swiatek is the first player since Justine Henin (2005, 2006, and 2007) to win consecutive women's singles titles at Roland Garros. The Polish player has won the title here in 2020, 2022, and 2023, respectively. She is on a 14-match winning run at Roland Garros.
Swiatek claimed these records by reaching RG final
Swiatek had reached her third women's singles final from her first five main draw appearances at Roland Garros. As per Opta, in the Open Era, only Chris Evert made more from her first five main draw appearances, reaching the final on all five occasions. Swiatek had also become the fourth-youngest female player in the Open Era to reach her third final at Roland Garros.
75 consecutive weeks at the top
Swiatek first reached the top of the WTA Rankings on April 4, 2022. Her reign ended on Sep 10, 2023, after she lost in the fourth round at the US Open. She held the top spot for 75 consecutive weeks, the third-longest streak in the Open Era (players who reached the top in their first stint). Swiatek later reclaimed the top spot.
A record-breaking WTA Finals title
Swiatek won the WTA Finals after beating Jessica Pegula 6-1, 6-0 in the summit clash. The former won the title without dropping a set. Swiatek became the first player to win the WTA Finals by winning each set since Serena Williams in 2012. The former lost just 20 games throughout the tournament, the fewest since the resumption of the round-robin format in 2003.
Swiatek won 83% of her sets in 2023
As per Opta, Swiatek won 83% of her sets in 2023 (141-30), the best win percentage of a player during the season. Aryna Sabalenka follows Swiatek with a win rate of 75%.
