Iga Swiatek advanced to the Wimbledon semifinals for the first time in her career. She defeated 19th seed Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 7-5 on Wednesday. At first, the match looked easy. However, things became tense in the second set.

Struggles on Grass Now Behind Her

Swiatek is already a five-time Grand Slam winner. She has won four titles at the French Open and one at the US Open. Additionally, she has reached the semifinals twice at the Australian Open.

However, grass has always been her most challenging surface. Although she won the junior Wimbledon title in 2018, she had not gone beyond the quarterfinals in five attempts in the main draw. Last year, she lost in the quarterfinals.

Now, she is finally finding her rhythm. Before Wimbledon, she reached the final in Bad Homburg, Germany. That was her first-ever grass-court final and her first final at any tournament in over a year.

Form and Confidence Improving

Last month, she lost to Aryna Sabalenka in the French Open semifinals. That defeat ended her 26-match winning streak at Roland Garros. Even so, she carried her good form into Wimbledon.

In the match against Samsonova, Swiatek dominated early. She quickly took the first set and led 3-0 in the second. However, Samsonova pushed back hard. The score soon became 4-4, then 5-5.

Yet, Swiatek remained calm. She held her serve to take a 6-5 lead. Then, she broke Samsonova’s serve to win the match. A big smile appeared on her face as she sealed her place in the semis.

One Step Away from the Final

Next, Swiatek will face either Mirra Andreeva or Belinda Bencic in the semifinals. If she wins, she will reach her first Wimbledon final.