Iga Swiatek might have lost her grip on being WTA No. 1, and that might not change soon. The odd part is that she has adjusted her game to focus on things other than clay, where she could have been a long-term giant. To be historically great, she needed to be more well-rounded.
For her to lose a final, though, many things need to go wrong. Her opponents have learned the hard way that to stop her, Swiatek needs to lose early in tournaments. Let her get to the last match, and everyone is in trouble. In her career, she is now 26-5 in finals after dispatching Elena Rybakina at the Cincinnati Open.
To be clear: Rybakina is the WTA No. 2 and one of the more powerful players on tour. Swiatek makes her look like an up-and-comer who had zero chance of ever reaching the top 10. At Rybakina's best, she is better than most other players, but at Swiatek's best, she is better than everyone else.
Iga Swiatek dominates Elena Rybakina in the final of the Cincinnati Open
Rybakina did have to deal with playing a very late semifinal match due to rain, but the final didn't start until the evening in Cincinnati. She should have had enough rest to overcome any fatigue. Swiatek didn't play as late on Wednesday, but still didn't get as much rest as at a normal WTA 1000 and didn't let that affect her against Rybakina.
The Pole's return game was elite. Her serve was precision-elite, and any hope that the Kazakhstani thought she had was quickly snuffed out. This was a brutal defeat where one player in their best form was much higher than the other in mediocre form.
The WTA should be forewarned that Iga Swiatek is back. Entering the US Open, as she played in the Cincinnati Open, Swiatek should be the favorite to take home her second US Open title. She won her first in 2022 and has reached only the quarterfinals in each of the last two years. In 2026, she could make her matches look easy and could be in position to challenge for WTA No. 1 soon.
In the live WTA rankings, she has moved up to No. 5. Should she win the US Open, she could reach No. 3. Byt the end of the year, she could overtake top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka.
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