Swiatek beats Raducanu in a battle between former champions to reach fourth round

World No.2 Iga Swiatek of Poland stormed past Emma Raducanu of Great Britain 6-1, 6-0 on Saturday afternoon at the Australian Open in a third-round clash between Grand Slam champions.

For sure I felt great,” Swiatek said in press. “I felt like the ball is listening to me. So just pretty loosened up. At the end I felt like all the tactics and everything I wanted to do, I was able to. So I just kept going.”

The two marquee names had won the US Open in back-to-back seasons (Raducanu as a qualifier in 2021, Swiatek as World No.1 in 2022), but today on Rod Laver Arena, Swiatek had the upper hand from start to finish as she collected victory in 70 minutes.

Five-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek is still in contention to reach her first Australian Open final. Her career-best result in Melbourne is a semifinal run in 2022, where she lost to Danielle Collins.

Moving forward into the Round of 16, Swiatek is still in the running to reclaim the World No.1 ranking she lost to Aryna Sabalenka at the end of last year.

If two-time defending champion Sabalenka does not make this fortnight’s semifinals, Swiatek will return to World No.1 after the Australian Open. Otherwise, results from the final four will determine who exits Melbourne at the top of the PIF Rankings.

“I just try to have the same kind of attitude and same kind of focus no matter what the score is,” Swiatek said. “I’m just playing my game. If it’s working, why stop?

“I’ve also seen many matches when someone was back [after] being down like 2-5 or something. You always have to just keep going. It’s not over till it’s over.”

Lucky loser Lys awaits: Swiatek hasn’t lost to a player ranked outside the Top 50 since 2023 Wimbledon, when she fell to former World No.3 Elina Svitolina, who was then on the comeback trail after maternity leave.

Swiatek will next face another player ranked outside the Top 50 in the Round of 16: lucky loser Eva Lys of Germany. In a match between two players contesting their first Grand Slam third-round match, Lys beat Jaqueline Cristian of Romania 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 on Saturday.

World No.128 Lys has now become the first lucky loser to reach the Australian Open fourth round since the tournament moved here to Melbourne Park in 1988. She is the first lucky loser into any Grand Slam fourth round since Elina Avanesyan at 2023 Roland Garros.

Lys has now defeated Cristian in all four of their meetings — and has come back from a set down in every single one of those occasions.