Pegula beats Swiatek and Gauff defeats Bejlek to set all-American Cincinnati final

Gauff defeats Bejlek to set up all-American final

Coco Gauff reached the championship match of the WTA 1000 Cincinnati Open by defeating Czech player Sara Bejlek in straight sets on the tournament's hard courts. Gauff completed the 6-4, 6-1 victory in 1 hour and 16 minutes in Saturday's second semifinal. In the opening set, the American broke Bejlek's serve three times and conceded two service breaks, holding serve in three separate games to take the set 6-4. Gauff controlled the second set by breaking Bejlek in three consecutive return games while holding serve in every service game to close out the 6-1 margin. Gauff concluded the match with a 63% first-serve rate and won 68% of her total service points.

Pegula eliminates defending champion Swiatek in three sets

Earlier on Saturday, world No. 3 Jessica Pegula secured her place in the final by defeating world No. 5 and defending champion Iga Swiatek 7-5, 4-6, 6-4. The contest between the two players lasted 2 hours and 51 minutes and produced 13 total service breaks across the three sets. Five service breaks occurred in the opening games of the match alone, establishing an exchange of breaks from the baseline. Pegula finished the first set with four service breaks against three from Swiatek, taking the opener 7-5. Swiatek stabilized her service games in the second set, holding serve four times and breaking Pegula twice to claim the set 6-4 and force a decider.

Third-set turnaround and serving statistics

Swiatek opened a 3-1 advantage in the third set before the 32-year-old Pegula responded with two service breaks in front of the local crowd. The decisive second break came after a double fault from Swiatek, allowing Pegula to hold serve three times in the set and secure the 6-4 win. Swiatek recorded seven double faults during the match compared to two committed by Pegula. In overall serving metrics, Swiatek landed 70% of her first serves and won 53% of those points. Pegula achieved a 58% first-serve rate and won 35% of her first-serve points, relying on six total breaks of serve to overcome the former world No. 1.

Tournament history and 2026 title records

Pegula's victory stopped Swiatek from matching Serena Williams, who remains the only player to reach consecutive Cincinnati Open finals after winning the title, achieving that record with victories in 2014 and 2015. Swiatek entered the semifinal following a heavy schedule that included 11 matches in 18 days, having won the WTA 1000 title in Toronto the previous week to end a 2026 title drought. Pegula advanced to her second career Cincinnati final after finishing as runner-up to Aryna Sabalenka in 2024. Pegula enters Sunday's final targeting her third title of 2026, following tournament wins at Charleston and the WTA 1000 in Dubai, where she will face former doubles partner Gauff.