Swiatek Shreds Shnaider, Speeds Into Toronto Semifinals

By Richard Pagliaro | Monday, August 10, 2026
Photo credit: National Bank Open Facebook

The cobalt court in Toronto is turning into a blueprint for Iga Swiatek’s title build.

Stacking physical points, Swiatek deconstructed Diana Shnaider 6-2, 6-1 driving into her second semifinal of the season at the National Bank Open in Toronto.

A sharp Swiatek overwhelmed Shnaider winning 11 of 16 points played on the left-hander’s second serve and converting five of nine break points to reach the Canadian Open semifinals for the second time following her run to the 2023 final four.

Continuing her hunt for her first final since she won Seoul last September, Swiatek will play either ninth-seeded Elina Svitolina or 16th-seeded Ekaterina Alexandrova for a spot in the final.

The Pole has played physical three-setters vs. both women recently. Svitolina edged Swiatek in a three-set Rome semifinal on red clay in May. Swiatek out-dueled Alexandrova 1-6, 7-6(3), 7-5 to capture her 25th career title in Korea last year.

Carrying a 37-5 career record vs. left-handers onto court, Swiatek spun a forehand winner down the line for triple break point in the opening game. When Shnaider sailed a forehand, Swiatek broke at 15 to open.

That game really set the tone for the rest of this 64-minute thrashing. A confident Swiatek was calling the shots using her spin control to unsettle Shnaider.

Hitting high topspin forehands that shot out of the 5’6” Shnaider’s strike zone, Swiatek stamped successive solid holds for 3-1.

The Shnaider lefty forehand is one of her best weapons, but she was misfiring on that stroke as the seventh game escalated into the longest of the set. Shnaider sent a forehand beyond the baseline to face a third break point then netted a forehand down the line as Swiatek scored her second break for 5-2.

Variation rather than vicious pace marked Swiatek’s serving success. Frequently hitting the kick serve wide on the ad side to displace the left-hander, Swiatek won 12 of 14 first-serve points in the first set and closed it on her second set point when Shnaider knocked a return into net. Swiatek committed just five unforced errors in the 31-minute opener.

Throughout this tournament—even after she dropped the first set to her French Open conqueror Marta Kostyuk—Swiatek has shown a willingness to patiently work the points. She did that effectively tonight.

Trampolining high topspin, Swiatek rattled out successive forehand errors scoring her third break for a 2-1 second-set lead.

The wide serve not only often set Shnaider scurrying outside of the doubles alley to return, it created plenty of open court space for Swiatek. Thumping a bounce smash, Swiatek backed up the break at 15 for 3-1.

The six-time Grand Slam champion cruised through eight of the last 10 points to close in 64 minutes. Swiatek improved to 27-12 and reached WTA 1000 semifinals on both hard court and clay for the fifth straight year. Swiatek is the third woman since 2009 to achieve that feat, after fellow No. 1 champions Simona Halep (2014-19) and Aryna Sabalenka (2021-25)