In a battle of past Indian Wells champions, Swiatek withstands a resurgent Andreescu

WATCH: Iga Swiatek defeats Bianca Andreescu in the 2023 BNP Paribas Open third round

INDIAN WELLS, Calif.— The record will show that Iga Swiatek this evening beat Bianca Andreescu in a third round match at the BNP Paribas Open, 6-3, 7-6 (1). Iga, yet again the victor in her quest to win this title for the second year in a row. Iga, world number one, a relentless swarm of movement, power, precision, focus.

To steal from a famous movie title, call so much of the WTA these last 12 months, All About Iga.

But let us on this occasion momentarily jettison the notion that history is written by the winners. Ponder Andreescu, a person who, like so many across the planet, has been tossed and turned by the tidal wave of events and demands that has made the 2020s highly stressful and continually uncertain.

Recall where Andreescu was at the end of the prior decade. She’d finished 2019 ranked fifth in the world, a supernova-like ascent highlighted by title runs at Indian Wells, Toronto, and the US Open. Even though a left knee injury suffered at the end of that 2019 ascent forced Andreescu to withdraw from the 2020 Australian Open, all seemed primed for Andreescu, 19 years old at the time, to occupy the highest rungs of tennis for a long time.

Then the whole world fell apart. In March 2020, Indian Wells was canceled just as the pandemic began. Between recovering from the knee injury and pro tennis’ suspension for many of those treacherous months, Andreescu did not play a single competitive match in 2020. Over the next two years, she grappled with a wide range of challenges, from testing positive with COVID-19 in 2021 to diminished motivation and a host of additional physical maladies. Ranked 45th in the world at the end of 2022, Andreescu has now made her back up to 36. As recently as last month, she withdrew from Doha with a shoulder injury. It’s been unfortunate to see a player so skilled struggle to find her best form.

But as Andreescu revealed tonight even in defeat, she has an eclectic array of shots and tactics that can trouble anyone.

“The thing that she's doing differently than other players is the way she changes the rhythm with those pretty annoying high balls,” said Swiatek. “I think that's the hardest thing, I would say. And also, it seems like you can be aggressive playing against her, but on the other hand, she's really good at defense and she's playing the slices that are tricky sometimes. You have to be ready for that.”

Disrupting Swiatek just enough to extract errors and generate openings for her own powerful drives off both sides, Andreescu this evening was on the brink of a major moment of resurgence. Some of this was inspired by memories of her 2019 title run here.

“The crowd showed some love today, which I was super happy about,” said Andreescu. “I love the court, I love the speed of the court, I love the balls. Everything is just perfect.”

Down 6-3, 2-0, Andreescu rallied to even the set. Serving at 2-2, 30-30, Andreescu struck a fine forehand down-the-line approach shot, closing out the point with a crisp angled forehand volley winner. Two games later, Andreescu served at 4-2, 40-15. But a Swiatek forehand winner and a misfired Andreescu backhand saw that opportunity vanish. Soon the set was even and the two inched their way to a tiebreaker.

As for Swiatek, her matches can simultaneously reveal dominance and fragility, an intriguing blend of physical prowess and mental uncertainty. This is most notable when Swiatek issues one laser-like drive after another but declines to come forward and volley. The rally’s reset button pushed, a jittery Swiatek will then overhit. But as seen tonight, just when Swiatek was close to facing the deeper problem of a third set versus an increasingly inspired opponent, she balanced herself and found the right mix of power and accuracy that has taken her to the top.

More bluntly, Andreescu’s brainstorming session was terminated by Swiatek’s smothering blend. “She literally does not miss,” said Andreescu. “Like you could hit any shot in the world and she literally will not miss, she'll find a way to get to it, to put it where she wants it, exactly where she wants it.”

“I think my level of focus went up a little bit,” Swiatek said about her ability to dominate the tiebreaker. “I was trying to do that throughout the whole match, but for sure in the tiebreaker I felt like I'm the most focused and composed and really mentally there to finish in a solid way.”

But Andreescu also earned her own personal victory tonight. “It is frustrating not getting that win,” she said, “but it does motivate me that much more.” As the year continues, one hopes for more such efforts from Andreescu.