Iga Swiatek, the world number one, defeated Greece's Maria Sakkari 6-4, 6-0 to clinch her second Indian Wells WTA title, repeating her victory over Sakkari from two years ago. Swiatek, a four-time Grand Slam champion, asserted her dominance in the second set, securing her 19th career title and second of 2024. Despite Sakkari's efforts in the opening set, Swiatek's powerful forehand secured her the victory after 44 minutes of play.
Just 24 minutes later, the Polish star swiftly sealed the victory. She broke Sakkari at love to take a commanding 2-0 lead and smoothly cruised to the finish line. Swiatek, who bounced back strongly from a third-round exit at the Australian Open in January, noted that her 12 days in the California desert were more challenging than her score lines might indicate.
She lost just 21 games and didn't drop a set.
"I'm really proud of myself," she said. "Even though this tournament looked like the scores, maybe I had everything under control, it wasn't from the beginning to the end so easy.
"So I'm happy I could improve during the tournament. I felt really good in the last two matches, a big amount of confidence," added Swiatek, whose run included a grudge match victory over Linda Noskova -- the Czech teen who stunned her in the third round in Melbourne.
