Cincinnati Masters
Iga calls out the haters after dropping a set in Cincy
Iga Swiatek needed a set to find her game, with the top seed ultimately prevailing 3-6, 6-1, 6-1 over China’s Zheng Qinwen to reach the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Masters.
The player who has stood atop the WTA rankings for 72 weeks and counting did not have a perfect performance, though she did score a comfortable win as usual.
But Swiatek took time to call out haters who regularly voice their anonymous opinions on social media.
“The amount of hate and criticism that me and my team get after even losing a set is just ridiculous,” the top seed said..
“I want to encourage people to be more thoughtful when they comment on Internet.”
Swiatek added: “Seeing everything that’s going on on the Internet after some days when I don’t play my best tennis and just have a little bit worse performance..
“I feel it would be such a better place if we didn’t judge each other so quickly.”
Swiatek changed her dress after losing the first set, saying the clothing swap made all the difference mentally.
“My coach told me a few weeks ago it might be a good idea to change clothes and reset..
“I tried it and it worked, I got a different vibe in the second set – thank you, coach.”
Swiatek added: “I’d love to play two-setters, but for sure today wasn’t easy. The conditions were tricky with the wind.
“I haven’t played didn’t play a lot of matches on (Grandstand) stadium, so I also needed to kind of get used to it visually.
“But I’m happy that I problem-solved. In the second and third sets I played much better and was much more solid.”
Carlos Alcaraz could miss the entire grass season if a worst-case scenario on his wrist injury comes into play.
The Spaniard has already withdrawn from title defences on clay at Rome and Roland Garros after injuring the wrist this month in Barcelona.
But latest reports from Spain indicate that the world No. 2 could possibly not be back until the start of the US Open run-up next August, possibly at the Cincinnati Masters.
Rome’s La Gazzetta dello Sport broke the bad news on the fitness state of Alcaraz, winner of the last two French Open editions. The paper reported there was no chance for the player to compete either at Queen’s club, London, or Wimbledon, which begins in late June.
Main photo:- Carlos Alcaraz reached Wimbledon final 2025 – by Roger Parker ISF Ltd
World No. 2 Jannik Sinner became the youngest man to complete the full set of hard-court victories by beating Daniil Medvedev 7-6 (8) 7-6 (7) in the searing heat of Indian Wells.
The 24 year old Italian, didn’t face a break point during the final nor did he drop a set on his way to claiming his first title of the year and his 25th overall.
Sinner has won both hard court Grand Slams, with victories at the Australian Open in 2024 and 2025 and at the US Open in 2024.
In addition he has lifted all six Masters 1000 series hard court titles – adding the Indian Wells title to victories in Miami, Toronto, Cincinnati, Shanghai and Paris plus the season-ending ATP Finals.
Only Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer have achieved the same feat.
Main photo:- Jannik Sinner lifts Indian Wells Trophy – by ATPTour.com
Felix Auger-Aliassime bounced back after a slow start, with the Canadian raiding his game along with his expectations on Wednesday at the ATP Dubai event.
The top seed survived the loss of his opening serve to prevail 6-4, 6-4 over France’s Giovanni Mpetschi Perricard.
Victory marked the 10th quarter-final or higher at 11 tournament for FAA dating to Cincinnati last August.
The seed’s game is on the mend after a hiccup in the form of an Australian Open first-round loss, with FAA winning the Montpellier title and reaching this month’s Rotterdam final against Alex de Minaur.
Auger-Aliassime said that he tries to set an example to his team by way of keeping his tennis standards high.
“I’m responsible, I’m the one stepping onto the court – I’m the (support) team leader.
“I need to uphold the standards I want for my career.”
The winner who broke three times, said the ball reacted differently as he played for the first time in the afternoon.
“I couldn’t find my serve in the first few games, I needed to get some rhythm. he also made it difficult for me. I’m glad I was able to find a way back into the set.
The Canadian No. 1 improved his record against French opponents to 15-1 since the start of 2025.
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