Viktorija Golubic (SUI) def. Iga Swiatek (POL) 6-2 7-6 (1h30m)
This was a tricky first-round match for both Viktorija Golubic and Iga Swiatek, each probably feeling like a decent opportunity presented itself to reach the second round, and yet, having to go through an opponent they never faced before in order to do so. Golubic, ranked 81 in the WTA (career high at 51, spring 2017), carried a 1-2 record at Wimbledon into the match. Swiatek, the junior girls champion of 2018, was participating in her first main draw women’s match at Wimbledon although she had amassed an impressive 4-2 record in the first two Majors of the year, including a fourth-round appearance at Roland Garros. To add to the intrigue, both women are skilled competitors, each possessing a variety of shots in their arsenal, with Swiatek relying more on power, Golubic on finesse and footwork.
Swiatek had a bad start, there is no other way to put it. I am not sure if it stemmed from her being back on grass at SW19 after winning the junior title last year and putting pressure on herself to do well as a result, or from having higher expectations following her performance at Roland Garros, or if from her opponent being a high-IQ player with game that can derail hard hitters. It was probably a combination of these factors and more. In that “more,” you can also include her age. Swiatek just turned 18 a month ago.
She missed three approach shots deep in the very first game and lost her serve. In her next service game at 0-2, she missed yet another approach shot deep and a sitter forehand volley, and found herself down two breaks. By the time Golubic led 4-0, Swiatek racked up ten unforced errors, missing her first five approach shots.
In the meantime, Golubic was operating at high efficiency. She served 74% first serves for the match, which was important because it is not necessarily her best asset and her second serve can be vulnerable against an attacker like Swiatek (which was a factor when Golubic had to serve for the match later in the second set, more on that later). The Swiss player also used an ample amount of variation by making use of her drop shots, forehand slices, and backhand drives, not allowing Swiatek to settle into a rhythm or take charge in rallies.
Golubic particularly began aggressively on returns, putting Swiatek on her backfoot from the get-go. She was even repeatedly coming over the top on her one-handed backhand returns (which is not an easy task against Swiatek’s serves – see photo below) and aiming for corners or the baseline.
When I asked her about this attack-oriented disposition from the early moments of the match, Golubic confirmed that starting that way and complementing it with variation were essential components of her game plan: “I just wanted to start aggressive and also confident, just to feel my shots from the beginning. […] I knew I had to also vary a lot, but I had to have good quality with my [aggressive] shots, because if I let her play too much, like, she is a really good player and she can do everything with the ball. So, I wanted to show her from the beginning that I was there.”
Golubic finished the first set with only two unforced errors and clicking on all cylinders while Swiatek never recovered from her error-prone start (13 unforced errors). Even when she got one break back and served at 2-4, she sprayed four errors in a row – one double fault, one backhand volley sitter, a backhand frame shot and a forehand unforced error – to lose her serve again. Golubic pocketed the first set 6-2 in the next game.
The second set started out just as badly for Swiatek who went down a break early. But she did manage to finish the first four games of the second set with only four unforced errors, six less than the amount she had at the same point in the first set. And this time, the score was tied at 2-2, instead of being down 0-4. Nonetheless, right when it looked like she was sinking her teeth into the match, another bad streak of errors caught up with Swiatek. In that 2-2 game, up 30-15, she made three unforced errors in a row, third one a sitter when approaching to the net. She went down a break again.
Golubic rode the break until she served for the match at 5-4 and had five opportunities to end the match, all saved by Swiatek’s fearless attacking. There was not one of those five points that Viktorija could regret losing. In short, Swiatek came up with the goods. In fact, she hit the line so close on the third match point that Golubic thought it may go out and was ready to pump her fist in celebration before realizing that the ball landed in and the lineswoman confirmed it with her hands (photo below).
Other than the well-deserved saves on match points, Swiatek hit five winners in that game and won several points just on aggressive returns (back to my note earlier about Golubic’s second serve possibly becoming a liability). She flat-out played courageous tennis with her back to the fence and broke Golubic’s serve to get back to 5-5.
The set extended to a tiebreaker in which Golubic strung together five points in a row (total of three first serves and two terrific backhand aggressive returns to start each point) to go up 5-1. Although Swiatek got back to 5-3, she sailed a forehand deep for her tenth unforced error of the set on that wing. That was all that Golubic needed to close the curtain on her first match point of the tiebreaker, sixth overall. What seemed to be a routine victory at 6-2 5-3 almost turned into a nightmare, one that she narrowly avoided by staying measured and mentally resolved. Her reaction to winning the match point shows how relieved she was to win the tiebreaker (photo below).
As for Swiatek, judging from how she has performed so far in 2019, Monday’s loss is not a step backward by any means. In fact, this is the type of match from which young up-and-comers can draw valuable lessons. Her opponent was a more seasoned competitor than she is at this point in her career, and that distinction mattered. Golubic played a clean, clever match while Swiatek had trouble regrouping her game after shaky start, and finding a solution to her opponent’s terrific game plan. Every youngster plays a match like this one at some point in their career so that, hopefully, they won’t have to play it again.
Golubic’s next-round opponent is Yulia Putintseva who was one of Monday’s headlines after she eliminated the second-seeded Naomi Osaka in straight sets. She represents a tougher test for the Swiss, but in my opinion, Golubic will be up to the task, at least mentally. It will certainly be a match that I plan to put on top of my “priority-watch list” for Wednesday’s schedule, and so should you.