WTA Iga Swiatek US Open 2026

Swiatek bids farewell to the US Open in tears and ends her first year since 2021 without winning a Grand Slam

Andrés Tomás Rico - 7 Sep 2026
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Swiatek bids farewell to the US Open in tears and finishes her first year since 2021 without winning a Grand Slam. Photo: Getty Images

Iga Swiatek succumbed again when everything was in her favor. The Polish player, who had been playing an impeccable US Open without dropping a single set and increasingly seen as a favorite, wasted a 5-0 lead in the first set against Qinwen Zheng, who is known for her comebacks, turning the scoreboard around to 7-5, 6-3. As if that weren't enough, at the start of the second set, she requested the entry of a physiotherapist due to discomfort that prevented her from playing her best tennis in the decisive moments.

Whether due to the missed lead, the three set points lost, or those physical issues in the second set, Swiatek finished the match devastated and left crying from Arthur Ashe, who bid her farewell with applause and who does not forget her success achieved in New York in 2022.

Iga Swiatek's best result in the 2026 Grand Slams was the quarterfinals of the Australian Open

Or maybe her tears were because, for the first time since 2021, she will end her season without lifting any Grand Slam. After her first success at Roland Garros in 2020, there was a transitional year in 2021 until she exploded again in 2022. She won her second title in Paris and the aforementioned US Open, dominating the Paris Grand Slam's clay courts with an iron fist in 2023 and 2024, and in 2025, she surprised everyone by winning on the grass of Wimbledon for the first time.

However, in 2026 she has never found the level that made her unbeatable. There was some improvement with the arrival of Francis Roig in March, but it was insufficient to return to the pinnacle. In fact, her results this year in the majors leave much to be desired: quarterfinalist in Australia, third round in Roland Garros, and third round in Wimbledon. Meanwhile, in the WTA rankings, she drops one spot to 9th place.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Swiatek se despide llorando del US Open y cierra su primer año desde 2021 sin ganar un Grand Slam