Italian Open: Aryna Sabalenka Remains Serena Williams’ Final Hope for Rescuing Her Thunder From Unstoppable Iga Swiatek

Whether it was hard or grass courts, Serena Williams has marked a plethora of wins on different surfaces during her competitive journey. Even on the clay courts of the Italian Open, the American tennis star was a force to be reckoned with, as she has won the second most ‘consecutive completed matches’ in Rome. However, the former tennis ace’s legacy is now in jeopardy, and here’s how Aryna Sabalenka can step up to save it in the championship game against Iga Świątek.

The official Twitter page of OptaAce recently brought to light an elite list featuring some of the legendary players with the most consecutive wins at the Internazionali d’Italia. The post stated, “Only Conchita Martinez (24) and Serena Williams (20) have won more consecutive completed matches – retirements excluded – at the Internazionali d’Italia than Iga Swiatek (18, level with Chris Evert) in the Open Era. Legionary.” Even the 4-time singles Grand Slam champion Świątek is on this list, as she is currently behind Serena Williams (20) with 18 consecutive wins at the Italian Open.

The Polish player, who has reached the title match of this season’s tournament, can now close the gap to surpass the ‘Queen of the Court’ by clinching another win in Rome. However, it won’t be an easy assignment for Świątek, as she will be up against the 2-time singles Grand Slam champion and the second seed, Aryna Sabalenka. The Belarusian tennis star can now save the 23-time singles Grand Slam champion’s thunder in Rome by beating Świątek, who has already broken a Williams’ record in the previous season.

Iga Swiatek has already broken a ‘WTA Finals’ record that was held by Serena Williams

Back in 2023, the Pole outclassed some of the big guns, including Aryna Sabalenka, Ons Jabeur, and Coco Gauff, to reach the championship game of the WTA Finals without dropping a single set. Even in the finale, Świątek thumped the 5th seeded American Jessica Pegula in straight sets while also pulling off a bagel set, 6-1, 6-0. As she lifted the season-ending championship trophy, the 22-year-old player also broke a record that was held by Serena Williams.

The ‘Queen of the Court,’ who has won the WTA Finals on five occasions, previously held the record of conceding the least number of games en route to clinching the title. But in the previous season, the Pole managed to beat Williams’ record of 32 games conceded by winning the esteemed championship while considering only 20 games.

Do you think that the young Polish tennis star can break yet another Williams record on the tour? Let us know in the comments section.