Stat of the Day: Barty's WTA-leading 23rd win of 2021

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Ashleigh Barty had already been leading the women’s tour in a number of ways: No. 1 on the WTA rankings, No. 1 on the Porsche Race to Shenzhen and most WTA titles so far this year, having won one WTA 1000 (in Miami) and two WTA 500s (in Melbourne and Stuttgart). She’s actually the only player on either the ATP or WTA tour to already have three tour-level titles under her belt in 2021.

But with her 7-5, 6-4 victory over Iga Swiatek in Madrid on Monday, Barty took the lead in yet another category—most match wins this year. The 2019 Roland Garros champion’s win over the 2020 Roland Garros winner was her 23rd win of the year—she’s 23-3 in 2021, winning 15 of her last 16 matches.

The Australian will now play three-time Madrid champion Petra Kvitova in the quarterfinals.

“I love to play Petra. I do. She brings out the best in me,” Barty said. “It’s another challenge, another test. She’s won this tournament multiple times, loves the conditions here—a fresh challenge for me.”

Just behind Barty on the WTA match wins leaderboard are Veronika Kudermetova with 22, Garbine Muguruza with 21, Aryna Sabalenka and Ons Jabeur with 20 and Elise Mertens with 19.

Sabalenka and Mertens both play their third-round matches in Madrid on Tuesday.