Iga Swiatek Reaches Cincinnati Open 2025 Final After Defeating Elena Rybakina

Polish tennis star and four-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek has officially qualified for the 2025 WTA Finals, becoming the second player to secure her spot in the elite year-end tournament following World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Swiatek secured her spot by reaching the final of the Cincinnati Open, where she is scheduled to face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini. Her performance in Cincinnati is a boost to a comeback season where she has regained form and consistency following a difficult 2024.

A Fifth Consecutive WTA Finals Appearance

The reigning WTA Finals title holder, Swiatek will be appearing at the season finale for a fifth consecutive time, when the event returns to Riyadh between November 1 and 8. Sabalenka was the initial qualifier last July.

Swiatek’s 2025 campaign has been a dramatic return to form. Having struggled with a Grand Slam drought lasting 12 months and fallen temporarily outside the world’s top five, she fought back in fine fashion by taking her first Wimbledon crown, topping Amanda Anisimova in a classic final.

Comeback Victory Over Rybakina

In her Cincinnati semifinals, Swiatek beat 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina 7-5, 6-3. The contest was not straightforward, she was down 3-5 and 15-30 in the first set but led a determined fightback to take control. Swiatek afterwards admitted that Rybakina had put her under pressure initially but thanked her own resilience for her turn-around.

With this win, Swiatek is now tied and on the same spot as of Aryna Sabalenka and Petra Kvitova for the fifth-most WTA 1000 finals appearances in history, the three are now tied at 13 each.