"I Wouldn't Be Here"- Iga Swiatek Opens Up on "Worst Times" After Reaching Toronto Final

Iga Swiatek finally made her way into her first WTA final of the season, and she didn't shy away from revealing how long the wait had been. The seventh seed overcame Elina Svitolina 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 in the National Bank Open semi-finals in Toronto, her first victory over the Ukrainian in three previous meetings this year after defeats at Indian Wells and Rome.

When asked what reaching a first final since winning Cincinnati last August meant to her, Swiatek did not sugarcoat how difficult the road there had been.

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"It hasn't been an easy season, probably the toughest one in my life, on court, I mean with tennis," She said, as reported by The Tennis Letter. "So, yeah, it gives me a lot. This week has been really positive and inspirational for me, and it always kind of shows that you need to keep going, no matter what."

She was also quick to give recognition to those who helped carry her through the tough times.

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"I'm happy that the team is supporting me through the worst times, in the good times, it really means a lot, and without them, for sure, I wouldn't be here. So, also, congrats to them."

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The scale of the turnaround is significant. Swiatek has not won a title since the Korea Open in Seoul last September and has dropped to world No. 8 in the rankings.

Her road to Toronto has been a success of perseverance and domination, as she came back from a set down against Marta Kostyuk in the fourth round before eradicating 15th seed Diana Shnaider 6-2 6-1 in 64 minutes in the quarter-finals, during which she faced zero break points and made just eight unforced errors.

The semi-final against Svitolina was a much closer contest, with Svitolina earning 19 break points on Swiatek's serve but could only capitalize on five of them. While Swiatek had five conversions from 13 opportunities to secure the victory. The hard-fought win drove her to her 14th final appearance on the WTA 1000 tour.

History favors her heavily once she reaches a final at all. Swiatek has a 11-2 record when playing for a championship.

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Her opponent has now been confirmed: second seed Elena Rybakina, who battled past fourth seed Coco Gauff 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 in a three-set thriller. The two players are deadlocked at 6-6 in head-to-head, but Rybakina holds the edge by winning their latest meeting in the Australian Open quarterfinals in January.

The final will be one of the tightest contests as Swiatek will chase her first title of the season, and Rybakina will be fighting for the world No. 1 crown.

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