Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek will reach US Open final: Jimmy Connors discusses women's frontrunners

Eight-time Grand Slam champion Jimmy Connors has predicted that Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka will reach the 2023 US Open final this year.

Swiatek and Sabalenka have been drawn into the US Open as first and second seeds respectively. Defending champion Swiatek will begin her journey against Sweden's Rebecca Peterson on Monday, August 28, whereas Sabalenka will face Belgium's Maryna Zanevska in the opening round the following day.

Connors recently sat with Brett Connors for an episode of the Advantage Connors podcast and discussed the frontrunners at Flushing Meadows in the women's category. The American icon talked about the challenges a player might face during the Grand Slam tournament.

"Things happen in Grand Slams! You know the, nerves take over and feelings take over and your game… a lot of things can happen you know. So you’ve got to be able to take advantage of the good things and fight through the tough parts. You might have an easy draw to the Round of 16 but then it gets tough. You’ve got to be able to beat that too."

The former World No. 1 suggested that the battle on the women's side would be fun to watch, with Iga Swiatek preparing for a strong response after her loss to Coco Gauff in the semifinal of the Cincinnati Open.

"But it’s going to be fun to watch the women because you know Iga… she lost the last tournament right in the semis to Coco. She is not going to like that," said Jimmy.

Brett agreed with Jimmy, saying the Pole "usually rebounds well" and "comes back from a loss and is ready to kick butt," and asked Jimmy to pick potential finalists at the US Open.

“Saby [Sabalenka] and Iga,” Jimmy Connors replied.

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Iga Swiatek leads head-to-head against Aryna Sabalenka

Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek greet each other.

Iga Swiatek maintains a decent lead over Aryna Sabalenka in their head-to-head count. The World No. 1 has defeated Sabalenka five times in the eight matches they have played against each other.

The duo has played in two finals this year so far. Their latest meeting at the Madrid Open went Sabalenka's way. The 25-year-old defeated Swiatek 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in the summit clash in May. In April, the four-time Grand Slam winner registered a straight-set victory over the World No. 2 in the decider at the Stuttgart Open.

In 2022, both players locked horns on five occasions, including the US Open semifinal, in which the eventual winner Swiatek emerged victorious. Sabalenka's sole victory over the Pole last year came in the final-four stage at the WTA Finals. Their first-ever matchup was also won by the Belarusian in 2021.