He complained that the women use different, slightly lighter, tennis balls than the men at Flushing Meadows, where he had never made it past the fourth round. He was trying to get used to the noise and distractions, the hustle and bustle of the Big Apple. And she arrived with a record of just 4-4 since her 37-game hitting streak ended in July. None of that matters now. Reinforcing her status as the new dominant figure in her sport by winning what is expected to be the final tournament of Serena Williams’ career, No. 1-ranked Swiatek overcame No. 5 Ons Jabeur 6-2, 7-6 ( 5) in Arthur. Ashe Stadium on Saturday to claim her first US Open championship and third Grand Slam title overall. “It’s something I didn’t expect, for sure. It’s also like confirmation for me that the sky’s the limit,” said Swiatek, who is 55-7 in tournament-level play with seven trophies in 2022, both best in the WTA. “I’m proud. Also a little surprised.” WATCHES | Swiatek beats Jabeur in US Open women’s final:
Iga Świątek defeats Ons Jabeur to win the US Open Championship
Poland’s Iga Świątek downed Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur 6-2, 7-6 (5) to win the US Open, the 3rd Grand Slam title of her career. He acknowledged that he has concerns about the US Open after some shaky performances in hard-court tuning tournaments. It turned out okay: She’s the first top-ranked woman to win the US Open since 23-time champion Williams in 2014. “I feel like on the court, I can just do my job,” Swiatek said, “and I’m happy about that, that I can make those doubts go away.” Swiatek, like Jabeur, travels with a sports psychologist and it took some courage to end this. At 6-5 in the second set, Swiatek held her first championship point. Just before Jabeur served, Swiatek went to the side to change rackets – an unusual choice at the time. When action resumed, Swiatek missed a backhand. It could have been difficult to recover. Indeed, Jabeur pushed things into the tiebreak, which she then led 5-4. But Swiatek steeled herself, took the final three points and was soon accepting the silver trophy and a $2.6 million winner’s check, joking, “I’m really glad it’s not in cash.” The 21-year-old from Poland won the French Open for the second time in June and is the first woman since Angelique Kerber in 2016 to win two major titles in a single season. “She’s really set the bar very high. It’s great for our sport,” said Jabeur, a 28-year-old from Tunisia who will rise to No. 2 on Monday. She is the first African and the first Arab woman to reach a Grand Slam final and participated in the second in her series. But she is 0-2 at that stage, including a runner-up appearance at Wimbledon in July. “For sure, I’m not someone who’s going to give up,” said Jabeur, whose support group wore black shirts with white writing that read “Yalla Habibi,” Arabic for “Let’s go, my love!” “I’m sure,” she added, “I’ll be in the final again.” Iga Swiatek celebrates a point against Ons Jabeur at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Saturday. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images) It didn’t help on the sunny 29.4C afternoon that Jabeur needed to take on Swiatek, who has won her last 10 finals – all in sets – and has been outstanding from the start. Jabeur didn’t face a single break point in her semi-final win, but broke immediately when Swiatek hit a cross-court backhand winner off a small ball to close out a 15-stroke exchange. “The only match here where I started that well,” said Swiatek, who had to come back from a set down in the fourth round and into the quarterfinals. Eight minutes into Jabeur, Swiatek had scored 12 of the first 14 points for a 3-0 lead. “Put a lot of pressure on me,” Jabeur said. Using her heavy topspin forehand to take charge from the baseline, Swiatek dictated the pace and trajectory of the points. She ran her opponent this way and that, never letting Jabeur use the kinds of spins and variety he was used to. When Jabeur showed some of what she can do, Swiatek was able, more often than not, to extend points. She used intense court coverage, backed by a soundtrack of sneakers, as she ran all over the place, sometimes even sliding as she reached a ball, as one does on red clay, her favorite surface. When Jabeur missed a forehand slice early in the second set, she dropped her racket to reflect her desperation. A few points later, she dropped her racket while off balance and fell flat on her face. A running, down-the-line backhand shot by Swiatek on the next point made it 2-0 in this set. Swiatek raised a clenched fist and shouted, “Come on!” Then Jabeur made things interesting, briefly. But only briefly. She reached 4-all and, after ending up on her back when an off-balance backhand won a point in the next game, stayed there, savoring the moment, pounding her fists as she lay on the ground. Jabeur won three break chances in that game, any of which would have allowed her to serve for the set. However, he was unable to cash in from there, losing a groundstroke on each. Swiatek had to wait 10 minutes from her first match point to the one that sealed the contest, but she sealed it. He might be more comfortable at the US Open from here on out.
Canada’s Shaw lost in the wheelchair doubles final
Canada’s Robert Shaw and American partner David Wagner missed out on the US Open wheelchair doubles title on Saturday. The second seeds lost 6-1, 6-2 to the Dutch duo of Niels Vink and Sam Schroder. Shaw of North Bay, Ont. and Wagner won 74 percent of their first serve points but were able to on just one of six opportunities compared to five of nine for Vink and Schroder. Match points to match points to match points 7⃣ The US Open wheelchair titles were awarded today! pic.twitter.com/k0MZArNAEC —@usopen The 31-year-old Shaw dropped the opening round of the quadruple singles to world No.1 Vink earlier in the tournament. It is Shaw’s first time on the Grand Slam stage, having made his Paralympic debut last summer. He lost in the first round to Andy Lapthorne in Tokyo. Shaw is currently ranked seventh in the world in quadruple singles.
Australia’s Sanders, Peers win mixed doubles title
John Peers had lost 31 times in Grand Slam mixed doubles tournaments before finding the perfect partner — right in his own country. Peers and fellow Australian Storm Sanders won the US Open title on Saturday with 4-6, 6-4, 10-7 wins over Belgium’s Kirsten Flipkens and France’s Edouard Roger-Vasselin. Peers said he and Sanders had already met with other partners the previous times they had discussed playing together, then decided to revisit the issue earlier this year. Seeded fourth, they had narrow wins in the previous two rounds, defeating Canadian Leylah Fernandez and American Jack Sock in the quarter-finals, then taking a tiebreaker with Caty McNally and William Blumberg of the United States in the semi-finals. Saunders and Peirce took a 4-1 lead into that match tiebreaker, then rallied after Flipkens and Roger-Vasselin took a 6-5 lead. Peers shot an ace at the match point. Serving for the mixed doubles title, John Peers ACES! 🔥🏆 pic.twitter.com/8KZB5JeMqP —@usopen Saunders and Pers became the first Australian team to win the US Open mixed doubles title since Rena Stubbs and Todd Woodbridge in 2001. They won US$163,000. Roger-Vasselin was playing in his first mixed doubles major final at his 25th attempt, including his second with Flipkens. The peers teamed up with former women’s No.1 Ash Barty last year at the Olympics, where the Australians won a bronze medal.
