Iga Swiatek knocked out of Miami Open as opponent makes admission

World No. 3 Iga Swiatek’s streak of 73 consecutive opening-round victories ended on Thursday after Magda Linette pulled off a stunning comeback to win (1-6), (7-5), (6-3) during the Miami Open.

Linette's victory was the first time since 2021 that Swiateklost her opening match at any tournament, ending one of the most remarkable runs of consistency the sport has seen. Early on, it looked like Swiatek was destined to continue her streak that extended in tennis beyond five years.

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The Polish 24-year-old star rolled through the first set (6-1). Linette was previously defeated by Swiatek in three consecutive sets, all with the same score, and it seemed as if history was about to repeat itself in the eyes of tennis fans.

Meanwhile, a teen sensation on the men's side was left scrambling for words after Novak Djokovic slid into his DMs for a congratulatory message.

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Even Linette felt the familar feeling after winning a game during the first set against her fellow countrywoman. She admitted that this time around couldn't be worse than when Swiatek defeated her (6-1),(6-1) during the 2023 Beijing Open.

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"After I won that game in the first set, I was like, 'Ok at least I’m close to the last score so it can't be any worse right now,'" she said, laughing. She stayed patient waited for small windows to attack, and had faith that her offensive game would eventually open.

"I just felt that I’m doing a lot of good things. She was just playing much better than me," she continued. "I was just waiting for a window where maybe I can get a bit more aggressive and I can get a point here and there and got her in trouble."

Linette then admitted that luck also came into play when defeating Switek for the first time in their WTA singles career. "I was a bit lucky and played good in good moments and made it to turn it around," she added.

Linette is ranked No. 50 and has improved to 10-7 this season with her victory. She started at Miami with a comeback win over Varvara Gracheva (2-6, 6-2, 6-0) before defeating Swiatek, and she will advance to face Alexandra Eala in the third round, backed by head coach Mark Gellard.

Linette is also competing in doubles with Ann Li against Storm Hunter and Jessica Pegula. She defeated Emma Navarro and Ann Li at the Australian Open before losing to Karolina Muchova and reached the third round in Dubai with wins over Lulu Sun and Ekaterina Alexandrova.

She pushed her matches to three sets in Doha, Mérida, and Hobart. Earlier this year, she also scored wins over Venus Williams and Elisabetta Cocciaretto in Auckland before losing to Eala.

Switek's year has featured reaching the quarterfinals at both the Australian Open and Indian Wells, where she was defeated by Elina Svitolina, as well as a three-set loss to Maria Sakkari in Doha.

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