We are all set to witness a battle of two great players – Iga Swiatek and Ons Jabeur in the US Open women’s final on Saturday.
The Polish star has been having a memorable season so far. She won six titles in consecutive tournaments and that included the French Open as well. Now, she has reached her first US Open final on the back of some impressive performances. Swiatek was ousted in the third round at Wimbledon and in the quarterfinals at the Poland Open. The 21-year-old could not progress beyond the round of 16 at the Canadian Open and Cincinnati Masters prior to the US Open.
However, the champion player hit the ground running at Flushing Meadows with a comprehensive win against Jasmine Paolini in the first match at the Louis Armstrong Stadium. She followed it up with another dominant display against the American Sloane Stephens to win 6-3, 6-2. She won her third-round match against Lauren Davis in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 to continue her impressive run. The World No. 1 dropped her first set of the tournament against Jule Niemeier in the fourth round. After losing the first set, Swiatek came back strongly to bag the next two to eventually win the match 2-6, 6-4, 6-0.
The home favorite Jessica Pegula was Swiatek’s next challenger in the quarterfinals. They played an error-filled match which was closer than what a scoreline of 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) in favor of the 2-time French Open champion suggests. Swiatek committed as many as 32 unforced errors. However, the American tennis pro failed to take advantage as she was equally ordinar, committing 29 unforced errors herself. In the semi-final match against Aryna Sabalenka, Swiatek was put under intense pressure. The Belarusian pocketed the first set with relative ease. Swiatek had to pull up her socks to avoid letting an US Open final spot slip. She produced an inspiring performance to bag the second set. In the all-important third set, Sabalenka took a 4-2 lead at one point but Swiatek produced a magical comeback to win the set and the match 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.
The 28-year-old has also had an amazing year. She might not have won as many titles as Swiatek but her triumphs at Madrid and Berlin received a lot of praise from the fans. Jabeur was also brilliant at Wimbledon where she reached her first Grand Slam final before losing to Elena Rybakina in what was a monumental shock. Like Swiatek, Jabeur bowed out of the Cincinnati Masters in the round of 16 but at the US Open, she brought her A-game.
In the first match, she defeated America’s Madison Brengle in straight sets 7-5, 6-2. She followed it up with another win against another American Elizabeth Mandlik 7-5, 6-2 in the second round. Shelby Rogers faced Jabeur in the third round and is still the only player to win a set against the Tunisian. Jabeur won the match 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. In the fourth round, she faced Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova. Jabeur came up trumps 7-6 (7-1), 6-4.
An in-form Ajla Tomljanovic tried to stop the rampaging Jabeur in the quarterfinals. The Australian tennis star managed to give a fight to the World No. 5 but eventually succumbed to a 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) defeat. Jabeur faced another stiff challenge in the form of Caroline Garcia in the semifinal. The Frenchwoman came into the match on the back of a 13-match winning streak. However, Jabeur proved to be too hot to handle for the Cincinnati Masters champion. Jabeur thrashed Garcia 6-1, 6-3 to secure a spot in the US Open final for the first time in her career.
The head-to-head is tied at 2-2. Swiatek won the last encounter between the two players at this year’s Italian Open final.
Prediction: Iga Swiatek to win in three sets.
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