The world No 1 beat Victoria Azarenka to extend her winning streak to 25 matches; in the men's draw Novak Djokovic overcame Stan Wawrinka 6-2 6-2 to also reach the quarter-finals; Rafael Nadal lost to Denis Shapovalov in three sets and struggled physically in the last
Friday 13 May 2022 00:04, UK
Iga Swiatek and Novak Djokovic are both through to the quarter-finals of the Italian Open, while Rafael Nadal has been knocked out after a loss to Denis Shapovalov.
Swiatek, who is bidding for a fifth consecutive title, beat Victoria Azarenka 6-4 6-1 and Djokovic overcame Stan Wawrinka also in straight sets.
Nadal started strongly against Shapovalov - he won the first set 6-1 - before the 23-year-old levelled the match. In the decider, Nadal had issues physically and showed discomfort during and between points.
Shapovalov won 17 of the last 20 points to complete a 1-6 7-5 6-2 victory. He will face Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals.
Nadal's exit means it's the first time he will approach the French Open having not secured a clay-court title in the build-up since 2004.
The 35-year-old spoke openly about his physical condition during his post-match press conference.
"I had my foot again with a lot of pain, and that's it," he said. "(The pain) is sometimes more, sometimes less. Today was crazy.
"I am not injured. I am a player living with an injury. That's it. (This) is nothing new. It's something that is there.
"Unfortunately my day-by-day is difficult, honestly. Even like this, I am trying hard. Of course, it's difficult for me to accept the situation sometimes.
"What can happen in the next couple of days, I don't know. What can happen in one week, I really don't know now. It's the time to accept the situation and fight. That's it."
Roland Garros starts on May 22 and Nadal could win a record-extending 14th title at the clay-court major.
The first set alone took 79 minutes, with Swiatek saving eight of the 11 break points she faced, but the Pole found her form in the second to move through to an intriguing clash with Bianca Andreescu.
"For sure I didn't start well, and everybody could see that. I'm really happy with the way I reacted and how I improved in the first set," Swiatek said.
"Also how different the second set looked to the first one because I could really reset and really change the way I played. That's the most positive thing for me."
Swiatek's testing victory extends her winning streak to 25 matches, which is the the longest run since Serena Williams produced 27 straight wins in 2015.
She will now face the 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu, who missed the start of the season to prioritise her mental health.
Andreescu defeated Croatian Petra Martic 6-4 6-4, while third seed Aryna Sabalenka impressed in a 6-1 6-4 win over Madrid finalist Jessica Pegula.
In the men's event, world No 1 Novak Djokovic claimed a 20th win from 26 meetings against Stan Wawrinka to reach the quarter-finals.
Wawrinka secured his first victories for more than a year following foot surgery to reach the third round, but looked weary from the start and was unable to trouble Djokovic, who eased to a 6-2 6-2 victory.
"It's great to see Stan back," Djokovic said in his on-court interview. "He won two tough matches and you could see he's not physically where he wants to be.
"But, nevertheless, he's Stan Wawrinka, he can hurt you if you give him time and I managed to do well I think. From the beginning I really moved him around the court and held my serve pretty comfortably, except that loss of serve in the second set."
In the last eight Djokovic will contest a first match against eighth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, who saw off Marcos Giron 6-3 6-2.
Second seed Alexander Zverev defeated Alex De Minaur 6-3 7-6 (7-5) while Stefanos Tsitsipas fought back from a set down to see off Karen Khachanov 4-6 6-0 6-3 and will next meet Jannik Sinner.
