Iga Swiatek defeated Diana Shnaider 6-2, 6-1 in 68 minutes on Monday to advance to the Canadian Open semifinals, where she will meet Elina Svitolina after the Ukrainian came from a set down to defeat Ekaterina Alexandrova 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 in Toronto.
Swiatek reaches Canadian Open semifinals with win over Shnaider, to face Svitolina
Iga Swiatek defeated Diana Shnaider 6-2, 6-1 in 68 minutes on Monday to advance to the Canadian Open semifinals, where she will meet Elina Svitolina after the Ukrainian came from a set down to defeat Ekaterina Alexandrova 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 in Toronto.
Swiatek, seeded seventh at the tournament, broke Shnaider's serve twice in the opening set. Shnaider committed 12 unforced errors in the first set, including a forehand into the net that gave Swiatek a 5-2 lead before the set was closed out on another Shnaider error.
In the second set, Swiatek continued to control play from the baseline and did not face a break point. She secured a 5-1 lead with a cross-court winner that clipped the line, then closed out the match when Shnaider sent a forehand long on match point.
The result is Swiatek's first WTA 1000 semifinal of the current season. During the season she has not advanced past the quarterfinal stage at a Grand Slam. She lost in the second round in Miami to compatriot Magda Linette and was beaten in straight sets by Alexandra Eala in the third round at Wimbledon, a tournament at which she had been the defending champion. Following the Miami defeat, Swiatek replaced coach Wim Fissette with Francisco Roig.
Swiatek has won six Grand Slam titles, including one at the US Open in 2022. The US Open follows the Canadian Open on the tennis calendar.
In the other semifinal match, Svitolina recovered after dropping the first set to Alexandrova, who had previously beaten world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the prior round. Svitolina won the second set 6-0 and led 4-1 in the third after breaking serve. She dropped two games while leading 5-1 but ultimately broke serve again to complete the victory. Svitolina defeated Swiatek in the Rome semifinals in May.
- The article does not establish the current world rankings of Shnaider, Svitolina, or Alexandrova
- The article does not specify which round of the Canadian Open this match represents beyond 'quarterfinal'
- The article does not state the scheduled date of the Swiatek-Svitolina semifinal beyond 'Wednesday'
- The article does not explain why Swiatek is described as 'former' world number one or who currently holds that ranking
- The article does not detail the nature or outcome of Swiatek's Grand Slam quarterfinal appearances this season
- The article does not provide context on Roig's background or previous coaching roles
Read the original at Al Jazeera English