Clara Tauson upsets Wimbledon champion Iga Świątek in straight sets at Canadian Open

New York Times

2 days ago

Clara Tauson, world No. 19, continued the upsets at the Canadian Open in Montreal with a 7-6 (1), 6-3 win over Wimbledon champion Iga Świątek in one hour and 53 minutes Sunday night. On Saturday, it was the world No. 2 and top seed Coco Gauff to fall in straight sets to Canadian wild card Victoria Mboko. Now it's Świątek's turn to lose, unable to make the quarterfinals in her first tournament since winning her sixth slam.
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Tauson launched to an early lead, converting on her first break point chance to go up 2-1. Świątek's inability to convert on the break points she faced defined the first set. Tauson saved 7-of-8 break point opportunities, relying on her efficient serving (61 percent first serve for the match) to get out of trouble. At 3-2, a game where she saved four break points before holding, Tauson went after Świątek's forehand on one of the chances. The result was Świątek dumping the forehand in the net.
Attacking Świątek's forehand continued in the first set tiebreak. Instead of Świątek being patient on the return, a strategy she adopted during her championship run at Wimbledon, she elected to be more aggressive on the first swing. Świątek struggled to control the ball, leading to forehands in the net or sailing long. For the match, Świątek won just 24 percent (12-of-49) of points on Tauson's first serve.
The only point Świątek won in the tiebreak was a Tauson double fault. A Świątek double fault at 6-1 gave Tauson the tiebreak and the one-set advantage.
Clara Tauson picks up her first career win over Swiatek and moves into the quarterfinals!#OBN25 pic.twitter.com/MthAOUzRYj
— wta (@WTA) August 4, 2025
The second set saw Świątek's unforced errors increase. She started spraying the ball, particularly with her forehand. Tauson played smart tennis, keeping the ball in play, not beating herself. On Świątek's serve, Tauson was aggressive off the return, putting pressure immediately with blazing cross-court winners.
Up 2-1, Świątek fired two forehands in the middle of the net on consecutive points, leading to Tauson getting the break. Despite getting broken at 4-2, Tauson remained calm. Świątek's fighting spirit couldn't overcome the plethora of mistakes, with 46 unforced errors for the entire match. Up 4-3, Świątek double-faulted on break point, giving Tauson the lead once again. At match point, Tauson won another short rally, thanks to a Świątek backhand in the net.
Tauson raised her arms, smiled to her team and let out a scream of celebration. She finally recorded her first career win against the world No. 3.
casual pickup by Clara 💁‍♀️#OBN25 pic.twitter.com/F9KoZvrINi
— wta (@WTA) August 3, 2025
At Wimbledon, Świątek cruised to a straight-set win over Tauson en route to capturing the tournament. It was Tauson's turn to reciprocate with a victory, advancing to her second WTA 1000 quarterfinal of 2025. In February at the Dubai Tennis Championships, Tauson trounced world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets 6-3, 6-2, once again relying on a clutch serve — winning 80 percent of first serve points — and power from the baseline.
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On Sunday, Tauson adds Świątek to the list of signature wins in her career. Next up for Tauson is the current Australian Open champion Madison Keys, who saved two match points en route to a thrilling three-set victory over Karolína Muchová, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5. The two met in the Auckland quarterfinal with Tauson winning in straight sets 6-4, 7-6.
Another quarterfinal showdown awaits in Canada.