Iga Swiatek outlasts Aryna Sabalenka wins Madrid Open

Napoli s European hopes left hanging by a thread

MADRID -- Iga Swiatek avenged her loss in last year's final to Aryna Sabalenka and won the Madrid Open on Saturday after a third-set tiebreaker.

The top-ranked Swiatek beat No. 2 Sabalenka 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (7) for her 20th career title and third of the season. The Polish player will seek her fourth French Open title later this month as the two-time defending champion at Roland Garros.

Swiatek saved three match points in a final that lasted more than three hours. She improved her head-to-head record with Sabalenka to 7-3.

Swiatek collapsed on the red clay after Sabalenka hit long to end a match that lasted 3 hours, 11 minutes, the longest WTA final so far in 2024. Each player broke serve five times.

"Who is going to say that women's tennis is boring now?" Swiatek said. "Congrats as well to Aryna, because we both had an amazing effort today."

Sabalenka got the better of Swiatek last year at Madrid in three sets for the first win over her rival on clay. The two-time Australian Open champion was seeking a record-tying third title in Madrid.

"It's always a challenge playing against you, so thank you for motivating me and forcing me to be a better player," Swiatek told Sabalenka in accepting the tournament's trophy.

On Sunday, Andrey Rublev plays Felix Auger-Aliassime in the men's final.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.