Giant-Killer: Clara Tauson joins exclusive tennis list with stunning win over Iga Swiatek

Clara Tauson will face Australian Open winner Madison Keys in Canadian Open quarter-finals.

Clara Tauson’s redemption arc reached its peak at the Canadian Open 2025, as she stunned former World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the Round of 16, avenging her loss at Wimbledon earlier this year.

The Danish rising star delivered a fearless performance, defeating the world number 1 with the score of 7–6(1), 6–3 and ended the top seed’s nine-match winning streak.

“Unreal. Totally unreal,” that’s how she felt after her first-ever victory over Iga Swiatek in Montreal on Monday.

“I was playing good tennis in tough conditions here with the wind, but yeah, I really tried my best to keep my head cool and keep working, even though I got broken in the second set,” Tauson added in her on-court post match interview.

With her win over Iga Swiatek, Clara Tauson climbs from No. 19 to a career-high No. 17 in the WTA live rankings.

The journey to her career-best ranking hasn’t been simple — it’s been marked by some of the biggest wins of her career. She stunned World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 6-2 in the Round of 16 at the Dubai WTA 1000 in February. And now, she’s taken down the top-ranked Polish star in Canada.

At the Wimbledon 2025, Tauson had delivered a statement win in the round of 32, defeating the current World No. 12 Elena Rybakina 7-6(6), 6-3. But then, Iga Swiatek the champion of the All England Club 2025 knocked her out in round of 16 with 6-4, 6-1 win.

Nevertheless, still, Tauson has now managed to beat all three to-ten ranked players — Sabalenka, Swiątek, and Rybakina — on fast surfaces this season, and all in straight sets.

With her spot at the Canadian Open quarter-finals, the 22-year-old claimed her fifth career top 10 win and second against a top five opponent her win over Aryna Sabalenka in Dubai.

The Dane also became only the fifth player in 2025 to defeat both Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek, joining the elite company of Madison Keys, Mirra Andreeva, Coco Gauff, and Jelena Ostapenko.

Tauson has three WTA titles to her name so far, all at the WTA 250 level. A win in Canada would mark the biggest title of her career.

She will face world No 8 Madison Keys in the quarter-finals in Montreal.

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