"Not going to repeat what Steffi Graf said" - Iga Swiatek's savvy reply to fan in San Diego final
Iga Swiatek continued her historic 2022 season, beating Donna Vekic in the final of the San Diego Open on Sunday. With the 6-3, 3-6, 6-0 win, the World No. 1 brought up her 64th win of the season, lifting her eighth WTA Tour title of the year in the process.
Swiatek, therefore, became the first woman to win eight or more titles in a season since Serena Williams in 2013 and the fifth player since 2000 to achieve the feat (behind Martina Hingis, Williams, Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin).
To add to her haul this year, the Pole also received a marriage proposal at the presentation ceremony in San Diego afterward, where one fan yelled out if she would marry him from the stands.
Iga Swiatek, who had gracefully declined to give her racquets to some fans after the semifinal fixture in San Diego only a day earlier, shot down the request with the same savviness, replying that she did not want to repeat what Steffi Graf once did when confronted with the same situation.
"I'm not going to repeat what Steffi Graf said, but you probably know what she said," Swiatek said.
"Iga will you marry me?"
Iga: I am not gonna repeat what Steffi Graf said"
so exactly what she said? 😅 https://t.co/HlXwoJretx
For those unaware, 22-time Grand Slam champion Graf received a similar marriage proposal at the 1996 Wimbledon Championships, which she cleverly shot down by asking the fan, "How much money do you have?"
Graf's response then drew a big round of applause from other fans at the arena, as did Iga Swiatek's at the 2022 San Diego Open, earning her more followers in the process for her charm and wit.
A man yells in Polish:
Iga laughs: "I'm not going to repeat what Steffi Graf said, but you probably know what she said."
youtube.com/watch?v=KrpdRh…
Iga Swiatek needs 4 more bagels to match Serena Williams' 21st century record
The bagel she served to Donna Vekic in the third set of the 2022 San Diego Open final marked the 21st time Iga Swiatek has taken a set 6-0 off her opponent this season, the most since Serena Williams' 21st century record.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion served 25 bagels in 2013, the same year that she won 11 titles and recorded 78 tour-level wins. With only the WTA Finals in the three-time Grand Slam champion's calendar up next, since she is skipping the WTA 1000 event in Guadalajara, it will take a very dominant performance in the year-end competition from Swiatek to match Williams' record.
21st 6-0 for Iga Swiatek in 2022
-4 to Serena Williams 25 bagels in 2013 (most-in-a-season of this century)
So far, the World No. 1 has been joined by Ons Jabeur and Jessica Pegula in the tournament, while Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka, Caroline Garcia and Daria Kasatkina occupy the next four places. Veronika Kudermetova, Maria Sakkari, Paula Badosa, Belinda Bencic, Madison Keys, Danielle Collins and others will also have a shot at qualifying in the coming days.