SWIATEK (FINALLY) HAS HER CINCY CROWN

AFTER THREE STRAIGHT SEMIS, POLE TAKES TITLE

By Richard Osborn

At 24 already three quarters of the way to the career Grand Slam, there isn’t too much Iga Swiatek hasn’t already accomplished in this sport.

The Polish star still found a way to add a new title to her considerable resume on Monday night at the Lindner Family Tennis Center, with Canada one of only two WTA 1000 titles that had eluded her, finally breaking through at the Cincinnati Open with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Italy’s Jasmine Paolini.

After three consecutive trips to the semifinals, Swiatek finally has the Rookwood Cup within her grasp. As a result, she will move up to No. 2 in the PIF WTA Rankings, leapfrogging American Coco Gauff.

“It’s nice to check off the list another tournament on the season, one I haven’t won,” said Swiatek. “It’s a great motivation to push forward.”

“If I would have to point to two tournaments that would be the hardest ones to win, it would be Wimbledon and Cincinnati, so I’m even more happy. It’s kind of proved that the greatest moments will probably come when you least expect them,” added the reigning Wimbledon champion, once typecast as a slow-surface specialist.

Swiatek improved to a perfect 6-0 against Paolini in career head-to-heads, and has dropped only one set in those matches. It marked her 11th career WTA 1000 title, now tied for fifth with American Lindsay Davenport for most all time at that level.

With the early-evening light leaving half the court in sunshine, half in shadow, Paolini, 29, would strike first. Pressuring her opponent’s serve from the start, the 5-foot-4 baseliner broke Swiatek in her first service game, and subsequently consolidated for a quick 3-0 advantage in this rematch of the 2024 Roland Garros final. But as she so often does, Swiatek held her ground, returning the favor in the fifth game to bring the opening set back on serve. She would serve for the stanza at 5-4 and 6-5, making good on her second opportunity.

Down a break at 2-3 in the second set, Paolini would pull level in dramatic fashion. She brought the appreciative spectators to their feet with a running forehand winner down the line, raising her firsts to the sky amidst the roar.

“The love from the crowd was amazing,” said Paolini, a Roland Garros and Wimbledon runner-up last year. “I really like the American crowd. It’s really loud, no matter who they’re cheering for. Even in the bad moments, they were supporting me: ‘Come on, Jasmine! Forza!’”

But Paolini couldn’t contain her opponent when it mattered most. The final set would feature four breaks of serve, the final, for 4-3, giving the eventual titlist the lead for good.   

It was a mixed bag from the service stripe for Swiatek, who finished with nine aces to seven double faults. It was her return game, instead, that shone brightest: She converted all six or her break-point opportunities, six-for-six in the one-hour, 49-minute match.

Just two years ago, Paolini was a qualifier in Cincinnati who reached the quarterfinals, falling to the eventual champion Gauff. Also in the doubles draw this year, she reached the semifinals alongside countrywoman Sara Errani, with whom she claimed Olympic gold at the 2024 Paris Games.

Asked to sum up the tournament in a few words, Swiatek said, “I would say hot, intense, and a good turn on giving me perspective.”