Swiatek cruises past Shnaider to reach Canadian Open semi-finals

Iga Swiatek brushed aside Diana Shnaider 6-2 6-1 to reach the Canadian Open semi-finals in Toronto on Monday in a confidence-boosting display ahead of the final Grand Slam of the year at Flushing Meadows.

The Pole, who won one of her six Grand Slam titles at the U.S. Open in 2022, was in complete control against Shnaider, combining crisp ball striking with strong court coverage to overwhelm her Russian opponent in 68 minutes.

Former world number one Swiatek broke twice in the opening set, capitalising on a string of mistakes from Shnaider, who committed 12 unforced errors in the set.

Swiatek moved 5-2 ahead when Shnaider sent a forehand into the net and secured the set after another error from the Russian.

There was little respite for Shnaider in the second set as seventh seed Swiatek continued to dictate play from the baseline and never faced a break point.

The pole sealed a second break of the set for a 5-1 lead with a sharply angled crosscourt winner that clipped the line, before wrapping up the contest when Shnaider sent a forehand long on match point.

The win puts Swiatek into her first WTA 1000 semi-final of an inconsistent season in which she has failed to advance beyond the quarters at a Grand Slam and suffered a surprise second-round defeat by compatriot Magda Linette in Miami.

That loss led Swiatek to make a coaching change, replacing Wim Fissette with Francisco Roig.

Swiatek was also beaten in straight sets by Alexandra Eala in the third round at Wimbledon, where she was defending champion.

She next faces either Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova or ninth seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, who were scheduled to meet later on Monday.