After winning her first French Open out of season in October as an unseeded teenager, Iga Swiatek of Poland proved that was anything but a fluke by winning the title again in the spring as an overwhelming favourite.
Swiatek, now 21 and the number one seed, cemented her status as the game’s dominant player by defeating Coco Gauff of the United States 6-1, 6-3 in Saturday’s women’s final in just over an hour.
She even beat the rain, closing out the victory with thunder rumbling in the final game over the main Philippe Chatrier Court with its open roof.
Swiatek has been an irresistible force on every surface for the past four months, racking up lopsided victories with her cap pulled low and her intensity cranked up high. But red clay remains her favourite playground, as it does for her role model Rafael Nadal, who won his 14th French Open title Sunday.
But Saturday belonged to Swiatek and her own heavy-topspin forehand. She took command of the final from the start to win her 35th straight match and sixth straight tournament.
Her winning streak is the longest on the WTA Tour in more than 20 years, equaling Venus Williams’ 35-match streak in 2000.
Swiatek took a quick 4-0 lead before Gauff managed to hold serve. There were few extended rallies Saturday: the longest exchange was 15 shots, and the average rally length under four shots, surprising in light of the defensive skills of both finalists.
Although Gauff managed to break Swiatek’s serve to open the second set and take a 2-0 lead, Swiatek settled herself and played one of her best games of the match to quickly regain control. She won five straight games, creating openings with wide serves and angled groundstrokes and then filling them with winners, while Gauff kept making mistakes with her less reliable forehand, finishing with 19 unforced forehand errors.
Swiatek served for the championship at 5-3 and finished off the victory with a first serve to Gauff’s forehand. The return sailed just long, and Swiatek dropped to her knees and roared with delight toward her team.
She was a French Open champion for the second time. And in light of her age, her drive and her talent, it would come as quite a surprise if Swiatek does not win at Roland Garros again. This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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