Iga Swiatek plays 100th match as World No. 1, equals impressive Serena Williams stat
Iga Swiatek is the first player to have played 100 tour-level matches as a reigining World No. 1 since Serena Williams.
In fact, Swiatek has managed to post the exact same win-loss record that Serena Williams boasted of when she completed the feat during her reign atop the women's ranking in the 2013-15 period.
The Pole has posted a stellar 87 wins against a mere 13 losses since becoming the World No. 1, matching Serena Williams' 87% win-loss record for her first 100 matches as the top-ranked player.
Swiatek first ascended to the top of the WTA rankings on April 4, 2022, after the surprise retirement of Ashleigh Barty. But the 22-year-old was quick to prove her top billing by going on a mind-boggling 37-match winning streak.
The run saw her sweep the 2022 European claycourt season, including the French Open. It was the second Grand Slam win for Swiatek, who also lifted the trophies at the WTA 1000 event in Rome and the WTA 500 event in Stuttgart.
The player had previously claimed the Sunsine Double, having triumphed in Indian Wells and Miami Open. However, she was yet to overtake Barty in the rankings during those two tournaments, so her match wins at either of them did not contiribute to her strong 87-13 win-loss record.
As for Serena Williams, the Ameircan had put together three consecutive stellar seasons beginning in 2013, when she first reclaimed the World No. 1 ranking. The American would go on to end the year with a career-best 78-4 win loss record.
She continued her dominance on the tour thereafter, posting 52-8 and 53-3 records for 2014 and 2015 respectively. Williams remained the World No. 1 until she was overtaken by Angelique Kerber in 2016.
Iga Swiatek, Serena Williams among eight players to reach the milestone of 100 matches as World No. 1
Iga Swiatek is the eighth player to hit the milestone of playing 100 matches as the World No. 1 since the WTA began publishing computerised rankings in 1975.
The other players to have achieved the feat are Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis and Justine Henin.
Graf leads the list for most weeks spent atop the world rankings, with 377 weeks. She is followed closely by Martina Navratilova and Serena Williams, with 332 and 319 weeks respectively.
Iga Swiatek has been the World No. 1 for 69 weeks so far.