Iga Swiatek acknowledges Aryna Sabalenka's quality ahead of Madrid final meeting

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Iga Swiatek thinks it is going to be "a nice Madrid final" against Aryna Sabalenka and highlighted it is "always tough" against the Belarusian. On Friday, Swiatek destroyed Veronika Kudermetova in the Madrid semifinal 6-1 6-1, while Sabalenka dismantled Maria Sakkari 6-4 6-1.

Swiatek, 21, and 25-year-old Sabalenka are set to meet for the eighth time in their respective careers. Swiatek leads the head-to-head 5-2 and the Pole has won each of their three meetings on clay. “I think it’s gonna be a nice final.

Playing against Aryna is always tough and you have to be intense and keep your focus. For now I’m going to rest and use this time to get my fuel up, but I’m sure that I’m gonna be ready for the final," Swiatek said, per Tennis Majors.

Can Swiatek again beat Sabalenka in a clay final?

Both Swiatek and Sabalenka kicked off their clay seasons in mid-April in Stuttgart. In Stuttgart, Swiatek and Sabalenka met in the final, with the Pole claiming a 6-3 6-4 win over the Belarusian.

After winning it all in her first clay tournament of the year, Swiatek admitted that she wanted "really hard" to win against Sabalenka. "I wanted to win really, really hard, but I knew that I can't really focus on that and just I have to keep doing my job as I did on previous matches.

I'm pretty happy that I could kind of have good mentality and just focus on what I want to do tennis-wise," Swiatek said after beating Sabalenka in the Stuttgart final. While Swiatek has her eyes set on beating Sabalenka again, the Belarusian is determined to get revenge against the Pole and make amends for the loss she suffered in the Stuttgart final.

Clay is Swiatek's top surface and the Pole's 3-0 head-to-head against Sabalenka on clay is telling a lot. It remains to be seen if Swiatek can remain unbeaten against Sabalenka on clay.