Iga Swiatek
reigns in Cancun with an enormous victory over
Jessica Pegula, winning 6-1, 6-0 to claim the
WTA Finals title and finish the year as the world No. 1.
The top two
players in the tournament faced each other in an exciting final. Both Jessica
Pegula (5th) and Iga Swiatek (2nd) finished at the top of their respective
round-robin groups to advance to the semifinals.
The
American defeated her compatriot Coco Gauff (6-2, 6-1), and Swiatek had no
issues against the world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka (6-3, 6-2).
Swiatek
arrived at the Finals with hopes of regaining the top spot in the WTA Ranking,
depending on Sabalenka's results. With the Belarusian's defeat in the group
stage to Pegula and then in the semifinals against Swiatek, the Polish player
had the mission of winning the tournament to finish as the world's best for the
second consecutive year.
Swiatek's
domination was absolute from the beginning to the end of the match. The
American held her first service game but couldn't defend any more. Swiatek won
the next 5 games consecutively without giving her opponent any chances.
Swiatek won
92% of the points with her first serve and 57% with the second, while Pegula
won 50% with the first and 33% with the second. Swiatek capitalized on both of
her break opportunities to take the set.
In the
second set, the nightmare continued for Pegula, who could hardly do anything
against Swiatek's superb play. Swiatek won the set with a bagel, taking 80% of
the points in the set.
Swiatek's
victory was perhaps the most impressive of the tournament, and she won the
match 6-1, 6-0 to lift her first WTA Finals title and return to the top of the
rankings. This means that Swiatek finishes the year as the world No. 1 for the
second consecutive year.
Starting
from September 7, the Billie Jean King Cup finals will be played, where Poland
and the United States share a group. However, both Pegula and Swiatek have
decided to end their season and will not participate in the team tournament.