Cincinnati Masters Final: Gauff vs Pegula, Tiafoe vs Fils

Gauff defeats Bejlek

Coco Gauff sets All-American Final with Pegula in Cincinnati. Pegula rallies past Swiatek, Gauff advances to Cincinnati final.

Gauff and Pegula to meet in All-American Cincinnati final...

Jessica Pegula fought back in the third set to beat defending champion Iga Swiatek and set up a final against Coco Gauff at the Cincinnati Masters.

The world No.3 described her 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 win over Swiatek as “crazy” after coming through in 2 hours and 47 minutes.  

Coco Gauff will meet Jessica Pegula in an all-American Cincinnati final after Pegula’s comeback win over defending champion Iga Swiatek.

World No.3 Pegula called it a “crazy” match as she beat Swiatek 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 to reach the final.

13 - Coco Gauff is now the player with the joint-most main draw wins at the Cincinnati Open in the Open Era before turning 23 years old (13, equalling Linda Tuero). Kingdom.#CincyTennis | @CincyTennis @WTA pic.twitter.com/NsNqQeu1KX

— OptaAce (@OptaAce) August 23, 2026

The final set was a rollercoaster of breaks and re-breaks. Pegula moved ahead 5-4 after Swiatek saved three break points, only to double-fault on the fourth.  

Pegula served it out in style, clinching victory with an ace on match point.  

Gauff dispatched giant-killer Sara Bejlek 6-4, 6-1, ending the unseeded Czech’s run that included a fourth-round upset of world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka.

The all-American women’s final will be followed by the men’s title match between American Frances Tiafoe and France’s Arthur Fils.

Fils reached his first Masters 1000 final with a 6-3, 6-4 win over French Open runner-up Flavio Cobolli. The match was delayed 45 minutes by rain and lightning.

Swiatek and Pegula also had to wait through another rain delay before starting, and play was briefly halted again after just two games.  

“Crazy match today,” Pegula said after taking close to three hours to beat Swiatek, the Pole having lifted the trophy in Toronto the previous week.

“A lot of back and forth, a lot of breaks,” she said.

“Really windy, kind of odd conditions. I felt like we were playing well and then not playing well.

“It was really tough to kind of get a gauge on the match.”

The final set was a rollercoaster of breaks and re-breaks. Pegula moved ahead 5-4 after Swiatek saved three break points, only to double-fault on the fourth.  

Pegula served it out in style, clinching victory with an ace on match point.

“I was just really happy with the way I was able to kind of handle just a lot that was going on today,” the 31-year-old American said.

“I did a good job of no matter what was happening.”

The first five games all went against serve as Pegula and Swiatek struggled to find rhythm in tricky conditions.

Pegula was first to steady, holding to love for 4-2. But Swiatek hit back with three straight games. Pegula then broke again and took the set when Swiatek netted a volley on set point.

The second set also featured an early exchange of breaks. Swiatek then broke in the final game to force a decider.  

Despite the loss, Swiatek heads to the US Open starting August 30 feeling positive about her form.

“We made some steps forward in this intensive part of the season,” said the six-time Grand Slam champion.  

“It was tough to play today with the wind, but we each put pressure on the other.

“I didn't feel good in the first set but coming back in the second and using all of my chances was a good change.”

2023 Cincinnati champion Coco Gauff started fast against Bejlek, racing to a 4-1 lead. The unseeded Czech hit back to 4-4, but Gauff found her range again to take the first and dominate the second.

“I tried not to take my foot off the gas because I knew at any moment she could come back,” Gauff said.

Frances Tiafoe, beaten by Jannik Sinner in the 2024 Cincinnati final, is back in the championship match after beating fellow American Brandon Nakashima 7-5, 6-3.  

Tiafoe fended off three set points in the opener and broke Nakashima five times to seal the win in just under two hours.

“It feels damn good,” Tiafoe said.  

Tiafoe is expecting a “hell of a show” against Fils, who reached his first Masters final in 68 minutes. The 7th-seeded Cobolli was beaten by the Frenchman, who at 20 becomes the youngest French Masters finalist since Richard Gasquet in Toronto 20 years ago.

Fils said the weather delay had thrown him off.