Iga Swiatek of Poland celebrates after the final match against Annet Kontaveit of Estonia at the Qatar Open WTA tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar, Saturday, February 26, 2022. (AP Photo/Hussein Sayed)
- Two of the best clay court players, Iga Swiatek and Ons Jabeur, met in the Rome final
- Swiatek has 27 straight wins; Jabeur to 11. Something has to be given
- The world number 1 is a heavy favorite; we break it down and find the value
Will Iga Swiatek ever lose a tennis match?
Chances say it’s unlikely to be the Italian Open women’s singles final.
Swiatek vs Jabeur odds
| Player | Spread | money line | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| [1] Iga Swiatek (POL) | -5.5 (-118) | -560 | O 19.5 (+100) |
| [9] Jabeur Ounces (TUN) | +5.5 (-106) | +410 | U 19.5 (-124) |
Odds on May 14 at Barstool Sportsbook
Swiatek are heavy favorites against Ons Jabeur, although Tunisia have won their last two meetings.
But 2021 is not 2022; Swiatek is like an unstoppable powerhouse at the moment, and is already a heavy favorite at the French Open to win the upcoming Grand Slam, one of the biggest tennis events of the year.
Swiatek rules Sabalenka
You’d expect a WTA 1000 semifinal between the No. 1 and No. 3 will be a burner.
But with Swiatek in full confidence and Sabalenka on opposite ends of the spectrum, it’s a mismatch.
Swiatek leads 6-1, 6-2 in 79 dominant minutes.
Devastating stats? Sabalenka won just 29 percent (9-of-31) points on her first serve. He actually did better on his second serve and limited his collateral double-fault damage to three.
So it’s hard to say exactly what level Swiatek is. He played great tennis.
But he was never challenged or pressured.
Head-to-Head Swiatek vs Jabeur
| 20 (30 May 2001) | Age | 27 (August 28, 1994) |
| Warsaw, Poland | Place of birth | Ksar el Helar, Tunisia |
| 5-9 | Tall | 5-6 |
| 1 | Grand Slam Career Titles | |
| 7 | WTA Singles Career Degrees | 2 |
| Number 1 (4 April 2022) | Career High Rank | Number 7 (1 November 2021) |
| number 1 | Current rating | number 7 |
| $8,517,786 | Career Prize Money | $5,813,092 |
| 36-3 | 2022 Win/Lose Record | 25-7 |
| 1 | Head to Head Career | 2 |
Another Comeback Win for Jabeur
Jabeur lost 6-1, 5-2 against Maria Sakkari in the quarter-finals. The Greek player served for the match twice.
However, Jabeur capitalized on his opponent’s fall to run 11 of the last 12 games to stutter to the semifinals.
On Saturday, he had another battle on his hands.
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Daria Kasatkina’s opponent has match points. But in the end, Jabeur won again, 6-4, 1-6, 7-5.
He looked tired, and his tennis was quite ragged. But somehow he came.
Needs just under two hours of shade in the heat. But it was very tiring both physically and mentally.
Jabeur broke his opponent six times (out of 15 chances). But he himself has also been fouled six times, out of nine chances he has given his Russian opponent.
He is in his second consecutive WTA 1000 tournament final, having won in Madrid last week.
But he won’t be too confident on the tennis side. And he definitely won’t be fresh on the physical side.
History of Swiatek vs Jabeur . Match
| Year | Tournament | Surface | Score | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Cincinnati (R32) | Loud outdoors | 6-3, 6-3 | Jabeur |
| 2021 | Wimbledon (R16) | Grass | 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 | Jabeur |
| 2019 | Washington, DC (R32) | Loud outdoors | 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 | Swiatek |
Much is at stake for Swiatek and Jabeur
After Swiatek took the “Sunshine Double” earlier in the year, winning titles at Indian Wells and Miami, it was Jabeur’s turn to attempt the Madrid-Roma double.
It’s not something that happens often.
On Sunday, Ons Jabeur will try to become the 3rd player to ever win back-to-back titles at Madrid and Rome after Dinara Safina in 2009 and Serena Williams in 2013.#ibi22 pic.twitter.com/XgDWEgrh5O
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) May 14, 2022
Dinara Safina did not win the French Open a few weeks later.
Serena Williams did it.
The first set will be key for Jabeur, who this year was 21-0 when they won the first set.
Swiatek have lost just four first sets in their 27-game streak; he just lost in the second set… once.
Swiatek: “Ons is a pretty tough player with all the wedges and falling shots, rhythm changes. I’ve played against him a few times. It’s always been tough.
“I think it will be a good final and I think he deserves to be there.”#ibi22 pic.twitter.com/wqK9AWIqIo
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) May 14, 2022
But given how likely Jabeur is at this point – he has played most of the day’s matches in the heat, and it was a tough one – the first set will be more important to him than to Swiatek.
So we expect the first set to be close. So there are some interesting prop bets – like +163 for the first set to pass 9.5 games.
But if Jabeur lost it, the wind would come out of his sails. And thinking about how much effort it would take to win two sets in a row against undefeated Swiatek would likely be too much to handle realistically. So hopefully the second set will be pretty quick.
Swiatek is also likely to beat the spread (+118 at -5.5 games).
Best Bet: Swiatek in Two Sets (-175)
Stephanie Myles
Sports Writer
Stephanie gets dope straight from a tennis insider. In court, he has represented his country internationally. A BA in journalism results in years beating MLB and a decade covering tennis globally. He writes for Postmedia, Guardian, New York Times and also publishes OpenCourt.ca.
