"I’m gonna try to balance": Iga Swiatek highlights one thing she expects to work for her after securing first win at Madrid Open

World number two Iga Swiatek has stated optimism about one thing after winning her opening fixture at the Madrid Open. The 23-year-old, who is regarded as one of the best players currently playing in women’s tennis in the singles category, started her title defence with a tough contest where she came back from a set down to secure a win with a score of 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 against Philippines’ young sensation Alexandra Eala.

The result was a more important one for the five-time Grand Slam winner who recently suffered a defeat against the same opponent in the quarterfinal of the Miami Open in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 7-5. Swiatek was quoted in a report after the match where she talked about how he patience helped her in securing the win. The Warsaw-born also highlighted that after playing on the surface, she is very optimistic that her ‘top-spin’ will work.

"It wasn't easy to get into the rhythm and feel the right timing, so I'm happy that I was just patient," she said. “I feel like my topspin will work here. And I feel like the courts are pretty fast. It’s not like classic clay where the ball bounce is super slow. I think you need to be smart with tactics. Sometimes play with spin.. sometimes a bit more flat to keep the ball going fast. I’m gonna try to balance that in the next matches. I’m happy I’m gonna be able to play in front of you guys more.”

On the other hand, Eala also talked to the media as quoted by WTA’s official website and stated that she was ‘happy’ despite suffering a defeat on the day. "I’m happy with the match, happy with how I competed," she said. "Obviously up a set and a break is a good situation to be in, but you have to remember that there’s another person on the other side of the court. More so, a multiple Roland Garros champion. She did well also … Things to take back and to learn.”