Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula will meet for the Cincinnati Open title after both Americans won their semifinal matches on Saturday. Their showdown will be the tournament’s first all-American women’s singles final since Rosie Casals faced Nancy Richey in 1970. Pegula earned her place with a hard-fought 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 victory over defending champion Iga Swiatek. The match lasted two hours and 47 minutes and included an early rain delay.
Swiatek appeared to take control when she moved ahead 3-1 in the final set. Pegula responded by winning five of the next six games, breaking Swiatek’s serve at 4-4 before serving out the match. It was a major win for the 32-year-old American, who had already survived three-set matches against Sorana Cirstea and Amanda Anisimova earlier in the tournament.
Gauff had a much easier path through her semifinal, defeating unseeded Czech player Sara Bejlek 6-4, 6-1 in 76 minutes. The 22-year-old American led 4-1 in the opening set before Bejlek fought back to 4-4. Gauff then pulled away, winning eight of the final nine games.
Bejlek’s impressive run included wins over former Grand Slam champions Barbora Krejcikova and Madison Keys, along with a major upset of world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. Gauff is trying to win Cincinnati for the second time after lifting the trophy in 2023. Pegula is looking for her third title of the 2026 season.
Pegula holds a narrow 5-4 advantage in their previous meetings. However, Gauff won their only earlier championship match, defeating Pegula in the 2025 Wuhan final. On the men’s side, Frances Tiafoe reached his second Cincinnati final in three years by beating fellow American Brandon Nakashima 7-5, 6-3.
The opening set was unsettled, with the players trading four consecutive service breaks. Nakashima had three set points while leading 5-4, but Tiafoe saved all of them. He then broke serve and closed out the set. Tiafoe controlled the second set and completed the victory after one hour and 42 minutes. He also reached the Cincinnati final in 2024 but lost to Jannik Sinner.
The 28-year-old will face France’s Arthur Fils, who defeated Italy’s Flavio Cobolli 6-3, 6-4. Fils recovered after losing his serve early in the first set. Once he settled down, the 22-year-old took control with his powerful forehand and strong serving. He won 82 percent of the points played behind his first serve and converted three of his four break opportunities.
The victory sent Fils into his first ATP Masters 1000 final. Neither player has won a title at this level, meaning Cincinnati will crown a new men’s champion. The Tiafoe-Fils matchup will also be the first men’s Masters 1000 final between two Black players. Brazil’s Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos added a Latin American highlight by defeating Hugo Nys and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-4, 2-6, 10-2 in the men’s doubles semifinals. The Brazilians have now won nine straight matches after capturing the Montreal title earlier this month.
In the women’s doubles final, Czech players Marie Bouzkova and Linda Noskova defeated Magali Kempen and Alexandra Panova 6-1, 6-2 to win their first title together. Sunday’s schedule begins with the men’s doubles final at 2 p.m. Eastern time. Tiafoe and Fils are scheduled for 4:30 p.m., followed by Gauff and Pegula no earlier than 7 p.m
