Swiatek Beats Rybakina to Win Canadian Open, End 11-Month Title Drought

TORONTO —

Iga Swiatek beat Elena Rybakina 6-2, 6-3 on Thursday to win the Canadian Open, ending an 11-month wait for a title and giving the Polish player momentum heading into the US Open, which begins August 30.

Swiatek, a six-time Grand Slam champion, broke Rybakina's serve twice in a match where the Kazakh player struggled with her own game more than with her opponent's, according to Al Jazeera. Rybakina, the world No. 2, committed 12 unforced errors in the first set alone and managed just a single ace all match, Sky Sports reported. She had also played three hours more than Swiatek over the course of the tournament, after three of her earlier matches went the distance, and said fatigue caught up with her by the final. "I was just very tired. You could see that I wasn't pushing with the legs enough," Rybakina told reporters, according to Al Jazeera. "There was a lot of unforced errors, especially on top of the net. It was just a pure lack of concentration."

A Difficult Season Turns

The victory was Swiatek's first of the season and came after a stretch in which she failed to get past the quarterfinals at any Grand Slam and replaced her coach, drawing criticism from Polish media, Al Jazeera reported. Swiatek told Canadian broadcaster Sportsnet she felt angry even after winning. "I think that's the first time in my life I have something like that after a victory but it hasn't been easy, you know," she said, according to Al Jazeera. "I'm happy that I kept my composure, kept my focus, and I keep growing every month no matter what the challenges, and I'm super proud I could win this one."

At the trophy ceremony, Swiatek dedicated the win to "everyone who is dealing with unfair judgment and hate," Sky Sports reported, telling the crowd to "keep pushing, keep growing, keep focusing on yourself because you know what's best for you." The result moves Swiatek from world No. 8 back into the top five of the rankings, according to Al Jazeera.

Shelton Defends His Title In Montreal

In the men's draw, played separately in Montreal, Ben Shelton beat fellow American Brandon Nakashima 6-3, 7-6 (4) to win the Canadian Open for a second straight year, the Guardian reported. It was the first all-American final at the Masters 1000 level since Andy Roddick beat Mardy Fish in Cincinnati in 2003, according to the Japan Times. Shelton did not drop a set all tournament, becoming just the fourth man this century to win the title back-to-back, joining Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. "To play the way that I've played this week, to go through this draw without dropping a set, I think it speaks a lot to the work that I've been putting in, but it speaks a lot to my mental toughness," Shelton said, according to the Japan Times.