At the Canadian Open, in an unexpected turn of events, Iga Swiatek found herself struggling to defend her six major titles after recently becoming 2025 Wimbledon Champion and winning world number 15 Clara Tauson was victorious against Swiatek 7-6(1), 6-3 at Montreal. Their encounter at Wimbledon had seen Swiatek triumph with straight set victories against Tauson; Tauson described her victory here as being almost “unreal.”
Swiatek was hindered by her high error count during this match; making 46 unforced errors from both forehand and backhand strokes alone. When reviewing her play post-tiebreak, Swiatek acknowledged her mistakes while acknowledging how difficult hard courts can be and expressed appreciation for these encounters as learning experiences.
However, Swiatek quickly turned the tables at the Cincinnati Open, overcoming these hurdles to defeat Elena Rybakina in the semifinals and then outplaying Jasmine Paolini in the finals with scores of 7-5, 6-4, marking her first Cincinnati Open title. Despite a strong start from Paolini, Swiatek managed to come back and maintain an unbeaten set record throughout the tournament, a feat that solidified her position above Coco Gauff in the year-end number one race.
Tennis legend Lindsay Davenport has since pointed to Swiatek as the favorite for the upcoming US Open, underscoring her impressive performance in Cincinnati. This triumph not only marks Swiatek’s first Cincinnati Open win but also sets her ahead of Gauff in the live rankings, holding a 59-point lead with 7,933 points to Gauff’s 7,874.
Swiatek Reacts to Her Cincinnati Open Victory
Swiatek, now the first Polish player to win a singles title at the Cincinnati Open, shared her thoughts post-match. She expressed gratitude towards her team for pushing her to excel on faster surfaces, sentimentally thanking them and her family for their unwavering support. Swiatek also commended Paolini for the challenging match and mentioned her eagerness for a rematch at the US Open.
With her victory at WTA 1000 tournaments on Thursday, Swiatek increased her total WTA 1000 titles from eight in 2009 until 2017 to 11. Her win marks another step on her journey toward competing at US Open 2025; further strengthened by plans to join Casper Ruud for mixed doubles competition at that event.
Cincinnati Open tournament winners often go on to claim victory at the US Open; winners in both men’s and women’s singles won in recent years have gone on to take their respective Grand Slam crowns later in 2025 season. Tennis community eagerly anticipates to see whether Swiatek can continue this trend by capturing her second major trophy of 2025 season at US Open.