Iga Swiatek Advances to WTA Final After Thrilling Victory Over Elina Svitolina
Swiatek's Journey to the Final
File image of Elena Rybakina(Photo: @ivabianconero/X)
Toronto, Aug 13: Iga Swiatek triumphed over Elina Svitolina at the Canadian Open, marking her return to the WTA Tour finals for the first time in nearly a year with a score of 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 in the semifinals.
In their third encounter of 2026, Swiatek finally secured her first victory against Svitolina, advancing to her 14th WTA 1000 final.
Due to rain delays, the match commenced an hour later than planned. Swiatek saved several break points in the initial game and quickly took control, winning the first four games and breaking Svitolina in her first three service attempts.
Svitolina struggled to hold serve until she was down 5-2, managing to recover one break. However, she increased her aggression in the second set, which proved effective.
Refusing to engage in long rallies, Svitolina aggressively attacked every ball, earning two breaks and establishing a commanding 5-0 lead. Although she had three set points on Swiatek's serve, she settled for a 6-1 win in the second set.
In the third set, Svitolina maintained her momentum early on, applying pressure during Swiatek's service games. She converted a break in the fifth game to lead 3-2, but her performance dipped thereafter. Swiatek capitalized on this, breaking back and winning four consecutive games, including a break to love, to secure her place in the final.
On the other side of the draw, second-seeded Elena Rybakina from Kazakhstan advanced to the finals after defeating fourth-seeded American Coco Gauff with a score of 5-7, 6-2, 6-2.
Gauff, who had not played since Sunday, showed signs of rust in the opening game but quickly found her rhythm, holding serve effectively throughout the first set. She missed a set point on Rybakina's serve at 5-4 but broke through two games later to take the first set.
However, Gauff faced difficulties early in the second set, struggling to maintain her serve and ultimately being broken to fall behind 2-3. Rybakina took advantage, breaking Gauff again and winning the last five games in a row, closing out the match with a hold from 15-40 down.