Iga Swiatek has surprised herself with her form on grass, and she is now just one victory away from a first senior Wimbledon title.
The Pole has been growing in confidence on grass all fortnight and was calmness personified in a 6-2 6-0 victory over Belinda Bencic that lasted just 72 minutes.
It would have been even quicker but for a lengthy delay three games into the contest when, for a third time on Centre Court on Thursday, a spectator was taken unwell.
All the heat on the court was coming from the racket of Swiatek, who has somewhat improbably surged back to form on the lawns in SW19.
It was, by her exceedingly lofty standards, a torrid campaign on her favoured clay for the 24-year-old but a run to the final of the grass-court tournament in Bad Homburg on the eve of Wimbledon appears to have been the catalyst.
That was the first final Swiatek had reached at any level since winning her fifth grand slam title at the French Open last spring, and now she is only one match away from matching Carlos Alcaraz by winning major trophies on each surface.
Swiatek won the girls’ title here seven years ago but had never been beyond the quarter-finals in the main event until now and, asked if she had surprised herself, she said: “I did. Yeah, for sure.
Sensational Swiatek strikes on Centre Court ✨
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 10, 2025
Iga Swiatek produces a remarkable performance against Belinda Bencic to win 6-2, 6-0 and reach her first #Wimbledon final 👏
A defiant semi-final showing from the No.8 seed 👊 pic.twitter.com/NGGOI62uIk
“Honestly I never even dreamt it was going to be possible for me to play in the final. I’m just super excited. I thought I experienced everything on the court but I didn’t experience playing well on grass.
“I feel confident and I’m just going for it. For sure it’s working.”
By not winning the French Open for the first time since 2021, Swiatek had more time to prepare on grass, and that groundwork has been paying off in style.
She denied feeling less pressure this year, saying: “I think I’m not going to have seasons where the pressure is not going to be kind of forced on me from the expectations from the outside anymore.
“Every year it’s kind of the same, but I feel sometimes I can handle it better or ignore it. I think it’s easier if you haven’t won Roland Garros and also if you had more time to practise.”
Given her extra experience at the latter stages of slams, and the fact she is yet to lose a final, she will go in as the favourite against American first-timer Amanda Anisimova, who nevertheless will bring a lot more firepower than Bencic.
The Swiss has had a superb fortnight and will climb back into the top 20 on Monday less than nine months after returning to the tour following the birth of daughter Bella last April.
She admitted Swiatek was simply too good, saying: “I definitely thought today was just a different level from Iga. I thought she played amazing and I didn’t feel like she let me in the match for one second.
“Of course, I gave my best. I’m really proud of this tournament. There’s nothing I really regret today. In the end she was just too good, and I was a step too short.”
