Iga Swiatek has won her first hardcourt title of 2025 after beating Jasmine Paolini in straight sets at the Cincinnati Open on Monday.
The six-time Grand Slam champion pulled off a 7-5, 6-4, win over the Italian in just under two hours. Swiatek broke Paolini six times during the final and won 67% of her first service points to clinch the trophy. It is the 52nd time in her career that the Pole has beaten a top 10 player on the Tour out of 75 attempts. To put that into perspective, since 1990, only Monica Seles (61) and Steffi Graf (53) have managed to produce higher win rates in their first 75 meetings.
Swiatek heads into the US Open having won 14 out of her last 15 matches played, with her only defeat coming at the hands of Clara Tauson at the Canadian Open. A massive boost for the 24-year-old, who regards Cincinnati as one of the toughest events for her in terms of the conditions.
“If I had to point to tournaments that would be the hardest ones to win, it would be Wimbledon and Cincinnati, so I’m even more happy, and I kind of proved that the greatest moments will come when you least expect them,” Switek said during her press conference.
“I am also happy that I’m just progressing with these faster services.”
It is an extremely short turnaround for Swiatek, who is currently scheduled to play in the US Open mixed doubles event today along with Casper Ruud, which will be less than 24 hours after playing in Cincinnati.
“Tennis is all about adjusting. I have already been through many different situations and I could always kind of be ready for the first match and adjust. So hopefully that’s going to be the case this time.” She explained.
As a result of her latest triumph, Swiatek has returned to No.2 in the WTA standings and has a strong shot at dethroning Aryna Sabalenka from the top spot before this season ends.
“I know Aryna is having a great season as well, so I know that this is just going to be an effect of how I play. And honestly, this season hasn’t been easy, and I had many other things to worry about and many other things to improve, so I’m not thinking about that at all.” She commented on trying to return to world No.1.
Swiatek has now won 11 WTA 1000 titles since the format was introduced in 2009. This is the second-highest after Serena Williams, who won 13.
