World No. 1 Iga Swiatek wins her third major title at the US Open in New York
Iga Swiatek, left, celebrates with her family on Sunday after winning the US Open in New York.
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Iga Swiatek wins her third major title at the US Open in New York
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Iga Swiatek didn’t see her victory coming.
The two-time U.S. Open champion made it to the final in New York and beat American Taylor Townsend on a tiebreaker in the longest U.S. Open title match in history.
Swiatek, who turned 21 Wednesday, had not won since a second-round victory at Wimbledon in 2015.
“I was so nervous the whole week,” said Swiatek, who turned pro in 2017. “I would say I’ve never been that nervous before.
“It felt really good, but definitely a bit shaky at the end, and nervous before I hit the ball. It was a great match from start to finish, and I know I got a chance at winning it.
“I just had so much left in the tank, I just didn’t know how I was going to hold onto it, but I was so happy with how I played overall, especially on the big points.”
Swiatek was also not sure she would win that US Open title because she had never appeared on a Grand Slam main draw. The only women who did more than Swiatek in 2017 were her sister Iga, who was winning the Australian Open and the WTA Finals in Singapore, and Serena Williams, who won the Australian Open to end an 18-month drought at the majors.
It was another first by Swiatek, who grew up dreaming about being a professional tennis player like her parents and older sister, Iga. She had a chance to win a Slam when she reached the second round at the US Open in 2010 and played an exhibition