Polish tennis star Iga Swiatek defeats Naomi Osaka to win Miami Open ahead of rise to No.1 rank

Iga Swiatek of Poland and Naomi Osaka of Japan at the women's singles finals in the Miami Open on Saturday.

Polish tennis star Iga Swiatek cemented her claim to the world No. 1 ranking Saturday with a straight sets win over Naomi Osaka in the Miami Open.

The rankings are set to be released on Monday. Saturday's win for Swiatek was historic -- in more ways than one.

And she will be the first Polish player -- man or woman -- to reach the top ranking in singles tennis.

"Watching your journey is really incredible," Osaka told Swiatek after the match. "I hope you continue having fun."

Osaka, a four-time grand slam champion, was playing in her first final since she won the 2021 Australian Open.

Osaka also thanked her team for their ongoing support, including "after the things that happened like two weeks ago."

"They're kind of like the rock that stays by my side. I just thank you guys so much," Osaka said.

At Indian Wells last month, Osaka was heckled by a spectator early in her second-round match against Veronika Kudermetova.

Miami [US], April 3 (ANI): Iga Swiatek continued her red-hot form on the WTA Tour hard courts as she thrashed Naomi Osaka 6-4, 6-0 in the Miami Open final on Saturday.

Swiatek also joins an exclusive club by becoming only the fourth woman to win the Sunshine Double — titles at WTA 1000 Indian Wells and Miami in the same season.

She moves to that position following her commanding 1-hour and 17-minute victory. Iga Swiatek thrashes Naomi Osaka to win Miami Open