Second seed Iga Swiatek will face Naomi Osaka for the Miami Open title after the Pole defeated American Jessica Pegula in Thursday’s semi-finals.
After Japan’s Osaka battled past Belinda Bencic 4-6 6-3 6-4 earlier in the day, Swiatek, who will become world number one on Monday, claimed her 16th straight win with a 6-2 7-5 victory over Pegula to reach a third straight WTA 1000 final.
Swiatek sailed through the opening set but had to fight back from an early break down in the second. She squandered two match points at 5-4 before sealing victory two games later.
The 21-year-old is the first player to make back-to-back finals at Indian Wells and Miami since Victoria Azarenka won the ‘Sunshine Double’ in 2016.
Swiatek has faced Osaka only once, with the Japanese player winning in straight sets at Toronto in 2019.
“My second match on the WTA Tour, when I felt I am doing a breakthrough, was against her (Osaka),” said Swiatek, who will go top of the rankings following Ash Barty’s retirement.
“Even though I lost that match, it inspired me to work harder because she was number one back then. Right now I feel like I am on a different level, so I can actually compete … We’ll see how it is going to go. I’m really excited.”
