When Iga Swiatek won her first French Open title as a world No. 54 rookie three years ago, she did so without dropping a set and losing all of 28 games.
Coming into the final of this French Open giving away 21 games and zero sets, Swiatek, now as a ruthless world No. 1, appeared to be rewriting the script.
Karolina Muchova — a first-time Grand Slam finalist — though asked for a little plot twist, and Swiatek to play a rare third set from being a set and 3-0 up. Like champions often do, the Pole responded to adversity. Swiatek dropped a set after all but not the tag of the French Open holder.
The world No. 1 defeated the spirited Czech 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 in a closely-contested women's singles final — a rarity at the Grand Slam stage in recent times — to defend her title in Paris on Saturday and collect (well, she did drop the Suzanne-Lenglen Cup in the ceremony) a fourth Grand Slam trophy of her career.
The 22-year-old now holds three of the last five Grand Slam titles, winding back to her French Open and US Open triumphs of last year. Not since Serena Williams's three-title 2015 season has the women's game seen such sustained dominance from a single player in majors.
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