Iga Swiatek kicked off her WTA Finals title defence with a hard-fought victory, rallying back from a set and a double-break down to overcome eighth-seeded Barbora Krejcikova in Riyadh on Sunday. The Polish second seed kept her hopes of wrestling back the number one ranking from Aryna Sabalenka alive with a 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 performance against Krejcikova. Making her first competitive appearance in two months, Swiatek fell behind 4-6, 0-3 before she mounted a successful comeback against the crafty Czech. "For sure it wasn't easy. At the beginning I felt a bit rusty but I'm happy I found a way to play a little bit more solid," said Swiatek on court. "I tried to do the usual stuff that I do to control the ball a bit more because it was flying like crazy off my racquet.