Iga Swiatek secured a fifth straight title by beating Ons Jabeur to successfully defend her Italian Open crown.
The 20-year-old Pole has been unstoppable since taking over as world number one from Ashleigh Barty, with her last defeat coming in Dubai back in February.
Swiatek did not drop a set in Rome and eased to a 6-2 6-2 victory over ninth seed Jabeur for her 28th consecutive win ahead of the French Open, where she will be an overwhelming favourite to claim a second grand slam title.
𝙄𝙂𝘼𝙂𝘼𝙄𝙉! 🎾🏆🔥
2️⃣ back-to-back title wins in Rome for @iga_swiatek!
Swiatek-Jabeur 6-2 6-2#IBI22 | #tennis | #Swiatek pic.twitter.com/rksZ4mda2D— Internazionali Bnl (@InteBNLdItalia) May 15, 2022
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Jabeur was herself on an 11-match winning run having won her biggest title in Madrid last week but had negotiated a significantly more troublesome path in making it to the final at the Foro Italico.
Swiatek, who had lost her last two meetings with Jabeur, stamped her authority on the match early on and looked in total control at a set and 4-0 up.
Jabeur attempted a fightback, winning two games in a row, but Swiatek withstood intense pressure to hold in the seventh game and clinched her first match point soon after.
