Iga Swiatek finds her flawless best to dismantle Naomi Osaka at Italian Open

Iga Swiatek produced a statement victory in a battle between two of the game’s best, mercilessly dismantling Naomi Osaka 6-2, 6-1 to return to the quarter-finals of the Italian Open.

This was the type of confidence-building performance Swiatek, the fourth seed, has been seeking for some time. After a tense opening four games, the four-time French Open champion put together a near flawless match, winning 10 of the last 11 games. Swiatek found a sweet balance between stifling Osaka with her heavy topspin and offensive weaponry while also drawing errors from her adversary with her tireless consistency.

In a match that pitted the six-time grand slam champion Swiatek versus the four-time major champion Osaka, this was by far the most eye-catching meeting of the tournament so far. Considering the level Osaka displayed in her dismantling of the 19th seed Diana Shnaider in the previous round and in their instant classic French Open second round match two years ago, which Swiatek won after facing match point, Osaka entered BNP Paribas Arena with reason to believe that she could at least make Swiatek uncomfortable.

However, a near perfect serving day was required from Osaka just to stand a chance. Her poor serving performance from the beginning set the tone for a quick, painful evening. In cold, heavy and slow night time conditions, her attempts to play fast-paced first-strike tennis quickly came undone against one of the best defensive players on the tour as errors piled up.

Naomi Osaka looks disappointed during her defeat. Photograph: Ciro De Luca/Reuters

The past few months have been a steep learning curve for Swiatek, her poor results leading to a split with her coach, Wim Fissette, in favour of hiring Francisco Roig in March. After some time spent training at the Rafa Nadal Academy, including a couple of training sessions with Nadal himself, their first big tournament together at the Madrid Open two weeks ago ended prematurely as Swiatek was forced to retire from her third round match against Ann Li due to illness. Swiatek is a three-time champion in Rome, her most successful event outside of Roland Garros, and in these familiar stadiums she took a significant step towards regaining her top form. Swiatek, the fourth seed, will next face the in-form fifth seed Jessica Pegula.

However, it is fair to say that the partnership between Swiatek and Roig started on the wrong foot. A few days before the tournament, Swiatek was training on the tournament’s clay court built inside Piazza del Popolo, a famous square in Rome, when Roig tore his achilles during a volley game they were playing. “We made a bet for €100,” said Swiatek. I thought I was going to lose, honestly, because he plays the volley so great. I was like: ‘Maybe let’s play only the singles court.’ It’s half-court basically. [But then] ‘Let’s play doubles. I want to win, I’ll make you move a little bit.’ I had 5-4 and the match point already. He did a split step and tore his achilles.”