Iga Swiatek swamps Maria Sakkari to win Indian Wells title for Tour-leading 20th match win of year
Iga Swiatek, of Poland, returns to Maria Sakkari, of Greece, during the final match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament, Sunday, March 17, 2024, in Indian Wells, Calif. Credit: AP/Ryan Sun
INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — Iga Swiatek beat Maria Sakkari 6-4, 6-0 in just over an hour to win the BNP Paribas Open on Sunday, with the world’s top-ranked woman losing just 21 games in six matches during the 12-day tournament.
Swiatek earned her 20th match win of the year, which leads the WTA Tour.
It was a repeat of the 2022 final, in which Swiatek beat Sakkari 6-4, 6-1. Sakkari hasn’t defeated the Polish star since 2021.
“Sorry I couldn’t put on a better fight,” Sakkari told the crowd that included actors Charlize Theron, Tom Holland and Zendaya.
Carlos Alcaraz faced Daniil Medvedev in the men's final later Sunday.
Swiatek raced to a 3-0 lead in the opening set. Sakkari recovered to win three straight games, including a break of Swiatek. She served a love game to tie it, 4-4. Swiatek lost just two points on her serve the rest of the set, wrapping it up with a forehand winner in the corner.
Swiatek was more dominant in the second set, breaking Sakkari three times all in love games.
Maria Sakkari, of Greece, returns to Iga Swiatek, of Poland, during the final match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament, Sunday, March 17, 2024, in Indian Wells, Calif. Credit: AP/Ryan Sun
Swiatek won 76% of her first serve points and won five of the eight break points against Sakkari.
Swiatek earned $1.1 million for the victory, less than the $1.26 million she made in 2023. This year more prize money was allocated to the earlier rounds, reducing the champions' prize money by nearly 13%.
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