Top-10 Takedown: Iga Swiatek surpasses Serena Williams with stunning win rate

Iga Swiatek survived a tough encounter against Madison Keys, suffering a bagel on the clay courts of the Madrid Open. However, she managed to recover to secure the victory 0-6, 6-3, 6-4 and guarantee her spot in the semifinals of the tournament, where she is the defending champion.

With this, the world No. 2 once again achieved a victory over a top-10 player, reaching an incredible record of 49-20 (71%). This surpasses Serena Williams (70.9%) as the second player with the best win rate against top-10 players, only behind the 22-time Grand Slam champion Steffi Graf.

The German, leader of the table, amassed a total of 208 wins against top-10 players and 63 losses (75% win rate) between 1984 and 1999. In the case of Serena Williams, she achieved 178 wins and 72 losses between 1997 and 2022, precisely in the tournament where she retired: the US Open, defeating world No. 2 Annet Kontaveit in the second round.

Further down the list is the 9-time Grand Slam champion Monica Seles with 135 wins against top-10 players in 220 matches (61.5%), while Justine Henin achieved a record of 86-56 (60.6%).

Swiatek will play her 20th WTA 1000 semifinal appearance (record 12-7 so far). The victory against Keys is already Swiatek's 5th win against top-10 players this season. Her only loss was in the United Cup at the beginning of the season against Coco Gauff, while she has already defeated Elena Rybakina (United Cup and Qatar Open), Emma Navarro (Australian Open), and Zheng Qinwen (Indian Wells) this year.

Swiatek will face Coco Gauff in the semifinals, against whom she has a favorable head-to-head record of 11-3 (5-0 on clay courts). However, the American has begun to reverse the unfavorable record, winning their last two direct encounters. This is a good chance for Swiatek to reach the Madrid final again and try to pursue her first title of the season.