Italian Open: Swiatek reaches semi-finals without dropping a set

World No 1 Iga Swiatek, of Poland, continued her flawless performance this fortnight as she advanced to the semi-finals of the Italian Open without the loss of a set.

The 22-year-old defeated American Madison Keys, the No 18 seed, for the second time in less than two weeks – 6-1, 6-3 at the Foro Italico in Rome. That was the same scoreline that Swiatek won the semi-final clash between the two in Madrid 12 days ago.

The win extends the Pole’s winning streak to 10 matches (12-2 on clay for the season) and was her 36th win in 40 matches on tour this year.

Swiatek, a four-time Grand Slam champion, will face the winner of the match between American Coco Gauff, the No 3 seed, and Chinese Qinwen Zheng, the No 7 seed, for a place in the final. It will be her third semi-final in Rome and her 16h career semi-final at the WTA 1000 level.

Earlier in the tournament, the 22-year-old Pole defeated American qualifier Bernarda Pera (6-0, 6-2), Kazakh Yulia Putintseva (6-3, 6-4) and German Angelique Kerber (7-5, 6-3).

The win also marked her 75th career win on clay – taking her career win-loss record on the surface to 75-10.

Keys, ranked No 16, won against Colombian Camila Osorio (6-0, 4-6, 6-3), Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia, the No 12 seed (6-4, 4-6, 6-3) and Romanian Sorana Cirstea, the No 28 seed (6-2, 6-1) in the previous rounds of the Rome tournament.

Rome WTA 1000, other quarter-final results (Foro Italico, clay, USD 5,509,771):

• Jelena Ostapenko vs. Aryna Sabalenka
• Victoria Azarenka vs. Danielle Collins
• Coco Gauff vs. Qinwen Zheng