Swiatek downs Garcia at WTA Finals, Kasatkina eliminates Gauff

FORT WORTH, United States, Nov 04 (AFP): World number one Iga Swiatek beat Caroline Garcia 6-3, 6-2 to clinch her semi-final spot at the WTA Finals on Thursday, but Garcia remained in the hunt for a place in the knockout stage.

France's Garcia can still advance with a round-robin victory on Saturday against Daria Kasatkina, who eliminated Coco Gauff from semi-final contention with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 victory over the fourth-ranked American.

Poland's Swiatek saved five of the six break points she faced and broke Garcia four times on the way to a victory that avenged her three-set loss to the French player in the quarter-finals at Warsaw in July.

Swiatek, the reigning US and French Open champion, who put together a 37-match win streak earlier this year, is aiming to finish out 2022 on a high note.

Garcia had a game plan against her, but said it's not always easy to implement against the implacable Pole.

"The thing is, you have to take some time away from her," Garcia said. "Try to be aggressive, to push her out of her comfort zone. But most of the time, she does it better than you. She really strong, really solid, doesn't give you a lot of unforced errors.