The Grand Slam calendar wrapped up this past Saturday, with a jam-packed two weeks in New York City. To cap off the women’s singles draw Poland’s Iga Swiatek defeated Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur in straight sets 6-2, 7, 6(5), taking home her first US Open trophy.
The current World No. 1 ended her whirlwind Grand Slam season on a high note celebrating the third Grand Slam of her career and second of 2022. Earlier this spring, Swiatek clinched her 37th victory in a row at Wimbledon and set a new WTA record for the longest unbeaten streak since 2000. During her historical run, she won six WTA titles including her second Grand Slam title and second French Open trophy, she also claimed the reputable title of world No. 1 in the women’s format, where she has remained for the last 24 consecutive weeks.
Heading into the hard-court season, Swiatek seemed to have lost her rhythm. She had been ousted in the early rounds at both the National Bank Open presented by Rogers and the Cincinnati Open weeks prior. But it was the hard-court final where she was able to rediscover her winning form, proving to be a dominant force in women’s tennis.
During her run at the US Open, she only dropped two sets against Germany’s Jule Niemeier (2-6, 6-4, 6-0) and World No. 7 Aryna Sabalenka (3-6, 6-1, 6-4). After surviving the three-set battle against Niemeier, Swiatek clinched her way to the semi-finals with a straight-set win over top-ranked American Jessica Pegula (6-3, 7-6(4)). It was in the semi-final match where she topped Sabalenka 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, to book herself a ticket to the championship round.
In the finals, Swiatek came out strong in the opening set, claiming the first three games over Jabeur. She was able to carry this momentum throughout the match with an epic display in the service department, landing 79 per cent of her first serves in play. The second set was more of a nailbiter with the championship title on the line. The Polish superstar was able to stay one step ahead of Jabeur until the fourth game when the World No. 2 broke back. From there, the match was back and forth between the two. It was in the tiebreak where Jabeur’s forehand sailed just out of bounds for Swiatek to claim the US Open title.
“It kind of gives you a little bit of that trust that you can handle any situation that is out there,” Swiatek said “Yeah, maybe some just confidence that next time you know what skill to choose and what solution to have, kind of. It’s the best experience you can have for next matches, for sure.”
