WTA Ace Gets Slammed by ‘Triggered Men’ After Iga Swiatek Earns Less Prize Money Than Carlos Alcaraz in Cincinnati

The debates about unequal prize money, it seems, won’t stop in the near future. Those who are against equal pay often point out how in the Grand Slam events, men get the same prize money as the women despite playing best-of-five matches. People advocating for equal pay argue about the physical differences between men and women.

Swiatek, in the Cincinnati final, beat Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in straight sets. Alcaraz, however, received a walkover from defending champion Jannik Sinner as he was ill during the match and deemed it best to retire mid-match. Both Swiatek and Alcaraz lifted the Cincinnati title for the first time in their careers.

Before this season, the Pole was a two-time semifinalist, reaching the stage in 2023 and 2024. The Spaniard lost in the final in 2023 to 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic.

After concluding the tournaments in their favor, Alcaraz and Swiatek wasted no time in booking the flight to New York for mixed doubles at the US Open. While Alcaraz and his partner Emma Raducanu crashed out of the tournament with a straight-set defeat to first seeds Jessica Pegula and Jack Draper, Swiatek and Casper Ruud have made it to the semifinals after beating home favorites Madison Keys and Frances Tiafoe in the first round.

They next beat the pair of Caty McNally and Lorenzo Musetti in the quarterfinals. The Norwegian and the Pole will next play Pegula and Draper.

Iga Swiatek posts a message on Instagram after her Cincinnati Masters win

The Cincinnati Masters was Iga Swiatek’s second title of the season. Before clinching her 11th WTA 1000 title, she ended her title drought at Wimbledon with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Amanda Anisimova.

The win in Cincinnati also helped Swiatek take a 6-0 head-to-head lead over Jasmine Paolini. Following the victory, Swiatek took to Instagram to share a post celebrating the title.

I guess it’s true that the best things come to you when you expect them the least. As I said I’m super proud of the work we put as a team to make this happen. Grinding no matter what, building resilience and patience. It’s not always easy, doesn’t come naturally. It’s just constant and deliberate work and believing that anything is possible. I couldn’t be happier. Congratulations @jasmine_paolini and your team for amazing tournament.

Check out her post here:

The Cincinnati title has helped Swiatek remove Coco Gauff from the second spot on the rankings table. But she will have to win more events in order to dethrone Aryna Sabalenka to reclaim her No.1 spot. Swiatek lost the No.1 ranking last year due to the doping saga (missed mandatory tournaments while serving her provisional suspension) as well as the Belarusian’s multiple wins on hardcourt events.

After the mixed doubles, Swiatek will shift her focus to the US Open singles and will aim to double her title tally. Back in 2022, she lifted her third Grand Slam title of her career by beating Ons Jabeur at the US Open . Last year, however, Swiatek lost in the quarterfinals to eventual runner-up Jessica Pegula.