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.
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.
On Sunday, Andrey Rublev plays Felix Auger-Aliassime in the men’s final.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
