ROME - Iga Swiatek gave another indication she might be back to her brilliant best after destroying Jessica Pegula 6-1, 6-2 at the Foro Italico on Wednesday and breezing into the Italian Open semi-finals.
A three-time champion in Rome, Swiatek took little more than an hour to take care of fifth seed Pegula on centre court, without facing a single break point.
It was a show of force on her preferred surface not seen since she last won the French Open two years ago, and gave Swiatek her first semi-final appearance of the season.
"I've been playing a bit differently, I would say. More similar to how I played couple years ago, more like a clay court player," Swiatek told reporters.
"I guess all the things that we practised really clicked during last few matches."
Swiatek set up a clash with Elina Svitolina, who fought back to beat Elena Rybakina 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, in the last four on Thursday night.
The Pole holds a 4-2 winning record over Svitolina, with victories in both of their meetings on clay.
If Swiatek gets past Svitolina again, a potential title clash looms with reigning Roland Garros champion Coco Gauff, who faces veteran Sorana Cirstea on Thursday.
Swiatek hasn't won a clay-court tournament since claiming the most recent of her four Roland Garros titles, with personal problems a factor in her poor performances.
But since struggling through her second-round win against Caty McNally Swiatek has dropped just seven games in three matches.
Swiatek, a six-time Grand Slam champion, recently took on board Francisco Roig, the former coach of men's clay-court icon Rafael Nadal, after a difficult opening few months of the season.
The 24-year-old got to the quarter-finals in Stuttgart in early April but was forced to retire from the Madrid Open in the third round due to a viral infection.
But the kind of form she showed on Wednesday suggests she could be a favourite for a fourth Foro Italico title and back in the mix for the French Open crown.
Australian Open champion Rybakina looked poised to set up a meeting with Swiatek when she comfortably took the opening set against Svitolina.
But the Ukrainian responded superbly, scrapping into her sixth semi-final of the season.
- AFP