Iga Swiatek felt “happy” and “relaxed” after checking off another tournament title from her list.
According to NDTV, the world No. 3 lifted her first-ever Cincinnati Open trophy after beating Jasmine Paolini in the finals on Monday evening, August 18.
The Polish player who failed to make it to the semifinals of the WTA-ATP tournament during her six previous appearances claimed a 7-5, 6-4 victory over world No. 7 to win her 24th career singles title.
The six-time Grand Slam winner, after beating her Italian opponent, expressed, “It means a lot to me. This year I really wanted it. I'm just very happy. It's nice to check off the list another tournament that I haven't won. I have friends here. It's a nice, relaxed tournament before New York."
The reigning Wimbledon champion asserted that it is not easy to win tournaments when everyone has expectations from you while accepting that she had areas to improve and this season has not been easy for her.
Meanwhile, Paolini, who became the first Italian woman to reach the Cincinnati Open finals, said, “When the rallies were going, I felt good on the court. The serves were the difference. When she needed an ace, she hit an ace. It was definitely a positive tournament for me. It wasn't enough, of course. I just need to improve.”
It is worth noting that Cincinnati was Swiatek's second title of the ongoing season after winning the Grand Slam at the All England Club, and she will now head to the US Open as the No. 2 seed in singles.
