Iga Swiatek survived a stern scare before booking a place in her first US Open final after outlasting Aryna Sabalenka in a roller-coaster showdown.
The world No.1 came from a set down the edge out Sabalenka 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, after more than two hours of play. It was a far from straightforward encounter for Swiatek who also found herself down a break in the decider before battling her way back. It is the third time in her career she has reached the final of a major tournament after winning the French Open twice before.
“I felt a huge difference between the first set and last two sets. I’m pretty happy that I got my level of energy up a little bit,” said Swiatek.
“Aryna made it difficult, for sure. I felt like she was serving pretty solid. It was hard to come back in third but I’m pretty happy that I did.”
Coming from behind, it was a quick bathroom break following the first set which helped Swiatek turn the match around in her favour. During her brief time away from the court, she conjured up a plan to change her game tactics. Upon returning she didn’t face a single break point in the second set. However, in the decider, she was down 2-4 before winning four games in a row to seal the victory.
“I tried to use that time to think about what to change because I remember when I was younger all I would do in the bathroom between sets after I lost was cry,” she said of the toilet break.
“But this time I could think about what to change and actually solve the problem.”
Coming into the US Open, Swiatek had found it tough going on the Tour. At tournaments in Canada and Cincinnati, she failed to win back-to-back matches. Prior to that, in her native Warsaw, she suffered a shock quarter-final loss to Carolina Garcia at the Poland Open which was played on her beloved clay.
The 21-year-old admits that the North American hardcourts remain a surface that she does struggle with. She has also in the past criticized the balls used at the US Open which are different to what the men used.
“I trust myself for sure on clay, and maybe also other surfaces,” she said.
“Here I just try to accept maybe that sometimes I’m not going to trust myself, and I still need to prove myself in a couple of matches against heavy hitters.”
“It’s not something negative for me. For sure, having doubts is not nice, but I also find it pretty motivating to get better and find new skills to get as close to the trust as possible.” She added.
Standing in Swiatek’s way of the US Open title is Ons Jabeur who is through to her second consecutive major final. Jabeur dropped just four games during her dominant 6-1, 6-3, win over Garcia. In doing so she has become the first African woman to reach a title match at the US Open.
The top seed has played the Tunisian four times on the Tour with their head-to-head tied at 2-2. This most recent encounter occurred at the Italian Open in May when Swiatek, who was in the middle of her 37-match winning streak, prevailed in straight sets.
“She has a different game style than most of the players. She has a great touch. All these things mixed up, she’s just a tough opponent,” Swiatek said of Jabeur.
“That’s why probably our matches are always kind of physical and really tight.
“She’s just a tough opponent and fully deserves to be in the final. I think it’s going to be a great battle.”
Swiatek has won her last nine finals played, including six this season. Should she win the US Open she would become the first Polish woman to do so. She is only the second female player from her country to reach the final after Jadwiga Jedrzejowska did so back in 1937.