Staff Reporter.
World No 1 Iga Swiatek cruised to a second Indian Wells title and eighth WTA 1000 victory of her career as she beat Maria Sakkari 6-4 6-0 following a ruthless finish.
In a rematch of the 2022 final, Swiatek came out firing, building a 3-0 lead before Sakkari worked her way back into the set for 4-4.
But on her third set point, the Pole dragged Sakkari from one side of the court to the other before capturing the opener with a forehand winner.
Swiatek, who did not drop a set all tournament, dominated the second, crushing a running backhand for a 3-0 lead and then breaking serve for 4-0 as the outmatched Greek began to fade.
A backhand winner down the line put Swiatek a game away and the top seed sealed the win by breaking serve to love when Sakkari’s forehand sailed wide on match point.
Swiatek is now 19-4 in her career finals and 8-2 at the WTA 1000 level.
Swiatek now heads to the Miami Open, where she will look to complete the Sunshine Double for a second time. One of only four women to win Indian Wells and Miami back-to-back, having first done so two years ago, the Pole hopes to join Stefanie Graf in completing the feat twice.