Swiatek advances to Rome semifinals with 6-1, 6-2 win

Iga Swiatek reached the Italian Open semifinals on Wednesday with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Jessica Pegula in Rome, delivering her first semifinal run of the 2026 season. The fourth seed needed 67 minutes to beat the fifth-seeded American at the Foro Italico, according to WTA match records. (wtatennis.com) The victory also gave Swiatek her first win over a top-10 opponent this year after a difficult opening stretch to the season. She will play seventh seed Elina Svitolina in the last four after Svitolina beat second seed Elena Rybakina 2-6, 6-4, 6-4. (wtatennis.com) ### How one-sided was the quarterfinal against Pegula? The 6-1, 6-2 scoreline reflected Swiatek’s control from the start. WTA statistics showed she did not face a break point and landed 77.8% of her first serves, winning 77.1% of those points. Pegula, by contrast, won only 12.5% of her second-serve points. Rome has long been one of Swiatek’s strongest stops on clay. The win improved her career record at the tournament to 25-3, and the WTA said she has won the event three times. (wtatennis.com) ### Why did this result matter for Swiatek’s 2026 season? The quarterfinal victory was Swiatek’s first top-10 win of 2026, the WTA said. She had lost her previous six matches against top-10 opponents, including four this season, in what the tour described as the longest such streak of her career. (wtatennis.com) The semifinal berth also ended a run in which Swiatek had failed to move past the last eight of a WTA event outside team competitions this year. WTA coverage said she had dropped to No. 3 in the rankings and changed coaches three months into the season before arriving in Rome. (wtatennis.com) ### What change did Swiatek say she has made to her game? Swiatek said after the match that she had adjusted her forehand patterns and was playing in a way that felt closer to her earlier clay-court tennis. Tennishead, citing her post-match press conference, reported that she said she was playing “more similar to how I played a couple years ago” and “more like a clay court player.” (wtatennis.com) The same report said Swiatek described adding more spin and power to the forehand and said the work she had been practicing had started to click over the last few matches. (wtatennis.com) She also said serve placement mattered more than speed on clay because of the bounce and the length of points on the surface. ### What has her path through Rome looked like? Swiatek’s run in Rome has included wins over Caty McNally, Elisabetta Cocciaretto, Naomi Osaka and Pegula, according to Tennishead’s summary of the draw and WTA tournament coverage. (tennishead.net) Her quarterfinal performance followed a 6-2, 6-1 win over Osaka in the round of 16. The WTA’s Rome scores page listed the tournament’s semifinal stage on May 13 results pages, with Swiatek and Svitolina advancing from the top half of the draw. (tennishead.net) ### What is next in Rome? Elina Svitolina advanced to face Swiatek after beating Elena Rybakina in a two-hour, 23-minute quarterfinal, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, according to the WTA scores page. The WTA also said it was Svitolina’s first Rome semifinal since 2018. The Rome semifinals are the next step for Swiatek as she seeks a fourth title at the tournament. (tennishead.net) The WTA tournament page lists the Internazionali BNL d’Italia running through May 17 in Rome. (wtatennis.com)