Iga Swiatek recovered from an early deficit to beat Elena Rybakina 7-5 6-3, while Jasmine Paolini overcame Veronika Kudermetova 6-3 6-7 (2) 6-3 to reach the Cincinnati final.
Swiatek and Rybakina delivered some fireworks early on, and the Kazakh was more successful since she opened a 5-3 lead. But just when it seemed that the first set was over, the reigning Wimbledon champion responded with back-to-back breaks and won the next four games to overturn the deficit and seal the opener. After taking the first set, the Polish tennis star earned the first break of the second set in the fourth game and then just held on to her serve for the rest of the match to complete a two-set win.
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In the Paolini and Kudermetova match, the Italian claimed the first break in the eighth game before serving out for the opener in the following game.
In the second set, Paolini led 5-3 and appeared to be on the verge of completing a routine two-set win. But Kudermetova refused to quit - managed to get the break back and force a tie-break - in which she opened a 6-2 lead before realizing her first set point to force a decider.
However, failing to get the job done in two sets didn't impact Paolini, who stayed calm and collected the first break of the third set in the sixth before serving out for the match in the ninth game.
Swiatek's reaction to beating Rybakina: Oh my God... The level was pretty crazy, cometimes
"Oh my God, for sure that was a tough match. At the beginning, the level was pretty crazy; sometimes, we couldn't even run to the second ball ... but I was there to play with intensity, good quality, and I'm happy with the performance," Swiatek said after beating Rybakina.
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Against Paolini, Swiatek has been dominant so far, winning all five of their meetings. And heading into the Cincinnati final, the Pole is again the favorite to get the job done.
