Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek (Anadolu photo)
ANKARA – Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek became the 2022 BNP Paribas Open women's singles champion Sunday in a straight-sets win over her Greek opponent Maria Sakkari.
Swiatek, 20, beat sixth-seeded Sakkari 6-4, 6-1 to win the title at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in California.
After the match, 26-year-old Sakkari praised Swiatek for her success.
"Iga, well played! You are a great champion, a great person. You deserve this. You deserve a lot more...Good luck in the future. Congrats to your entire team," she said.
Swiatek also congratulated Sakkari for her performance in the final.
"I want to congratulate Maria because every match against you is a great battle. And I know that we already started a pretty cool rivalry and I think it is going to last for, like, 10 more years. So it is going to be exciting, and you know I am sure we are going to play many more finals," said Swiatek, who was in tears during her emotional speech.
"It’s pretty crazy. I wasn’t expecting to be in this place,” she added.
In her speech, Swiatek thanked tennis fans for coming to watch the tournament in the US, adding she is glad that people were united and showed solidarity with Ukraine amid its war with Russia.
She became the first Polish tennis player to win the Indian Wells championship.
Swiatek ascended to world second seed, a career high.
She previously stunned tennis authorities after winning the 2020 French Open at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris in her first and only Grand Slam title. (Anadolu)
