Swiatek sweeps past Rybakina in Toronto to claim first title of 2026 and return to top five

· Sports CANPOLKAZUSA

Iga Swiatek defeated Elena Rybakina 6-2, 6-3 in the Canadian Open final on Thursday, clinching her 26th career title in 76 minutes and her first trophy since winning in Seoul last September. The victory, which came after Swiatek navigated past four Top 20 opponents including Elina Svitolina in the semifinals, secured her 12th WTA 1000 crown, moving her past Aryna Sabalenka into second place on the all-time WTA 1000 list since 2009 behind only Serena Williams.

Swiatek converted four of five break points and conceded just two in the match, while Rybakina committed 12 unforced errors in the opening set alone. The result means Swiatek returns to the world's top five and has now captured all five major North American hard-court titles. Despite the defeat, Rybakina will move into first in the WTA Finals race.

In the men's draw, Ben Shelton won back-to-back Canadian Open titles with a 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) victory over Brandon Nakashima, becoming the first champion since Novak Djokovic in 2016 to win without dropping a set. At the Cincinnati Open, Katie Boulter earned her first career win at the event by defeating Katie Volynets 7-5, 0-6, 6-4.

Story development

  1. Swiatek sweeps past Rybakina in Toronto to claim first title of 2026 and return to top five
  2. Swiatek, Rybakina advance to Canadian Open semifinals

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