Winners of the tournament
Fans were looking forward to a fourth final of the year between world number one Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz at the Cincinnati Open, but unfortunately, the match ended up being a major anticlimax after the former retired from the contest with illness after labouring to a 5-0 deficit in the first set.
The Italian was clearly hampered and was barely a factor against Alcaraz, and to the disappointment of everyone, the match was called to a halt after just 23 minutes. It was an awkward way for the highly anticipated clash to end and a great shame, especially with the ferocious way Sinner was playing during the tournament. But it wasn't to be.
The conditions have been absolutely deadly in Ohio, with the temperatures blazing hot. Players have struggled to deal with the conditions.
Sinner will now be focusing on getting healthy for the start of the US Open.
For Alcaraz, it is certainly not the way he would have wanted to win, especially considering he also beat an unwell Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals.
He wasn't always at his best either, after being taken to three sets in the opening round by Damir Dzumhur before being pushed to the limit by Andrey Rublev in the last eight. But he is the Cincinnati champion.
It is Alcaraz's 22nd singles title overall, while becoming the second youngest player after Rafael Nadal to win eight Masters 1000 crowns. He has a personal best of six titles in 2025 now, with a 54-6 record. He is enjoying a truly stellar year, and he will now have his eyes firmly on the world number ranking. All this at the age of just 22.
In the women's tournament, Iga Swiatek continued her resurgence and return to form with her maiden Cincinnati Open title and a first WTA 1000 crown in 15 months.
The Polish star - coming off the back of winning Wimbledon - didn't drop a single set all tournament, defeating the likes of Anna Kalinskaya and Elena Rybakina, before claiming a 7-5, 6-4 victory in the final against Jasmine Paolini.
For large portions of 2025, Swiatek looked like a shadow of the player who spent 125 weeks as world number one. However, Swiatek's intensity looks to have returned, and there is no scarier player in women's tennis than her when she is playing like this.
Her relentless hitting and movement around the back of the court are simply unmatched, and she looked so dialled in in Cincinnati. When her feet are moving the way they are at the moment, you know she is laser-focused.
In fact, she seems to have improved on the quicker surfaces, where she used to struggle a little bit in the past. She will unquestionably be fancying her chances of winning the US Open.
She has now moved back up to number two in the rankings and has a major opportunity of recapturing the throne of the world's best player sooner rather than later.
With 11 WTA 1000 titles, she holds the second-most since the format's introduction in 2009, behind Serena Williams' 13.
Strugglers of the tournament
On the men's side, Daniil Medvedev's season continues to go from bad to worse. The former US Open champion has had an abysmal 2025 and suffered another early exit, losing 6-7(0), 6-4, 6-1 to world number 82 Adam Walton in the second round. It is the fourth time this year that he hasn't won a match at a tournament.
His game has gone to pieces, and he's no longer the consistent, reliable baseliner that he once was. His physical powers seem to be waning, and it's not looking like turning around any time soon for the former world number one.
Meanwhile, eighth seed Lorenzo Musetti and 11th seed Casper Ruud both also lost in the second round, signalling just how much they both struggle on surfaces outside of clay. The former, who was so excellent on the dirt this season, has one win in five matches since the French Open.
In the women's draw, world number four Jessica Pegula was dumped out in the third round after a 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3 defeat at the hands of Magda Linette.
Last year's finalist is usually one of the most consistent players on the WTA Tour. She is normally a banker to get deep in tournaments and beat opponents she is expected to beat. However, she has suffered four opening match defeats since May, as well as winning just two of her last six contests.
It is strange to see her look so vulnerable, and after reaching the final of the US Open last year, she has a lot of points to defend.
Her fellow American, Emma Navarro, was also knocked out in the second round, losing 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 in really disappointing fashion to Ella Seidel.
After being named the WTA Most Improved Player of 2024, Navarro hasn't quite been able to kick on in 2025 and now has one win in her last five matches.
As a result, she has decided to play in the Monterrey Open ahead of the US Open to get some form.
Moment of the tournament
French qualifier Terence Atmane, who was the world number 136 heading into the Cincinnati Open and without a clothing sponsor, was one of the surprise packages of the tournament, defeating Flavio Cobolli, Joao Fonseca, Taylor Fritz and Holger Rune on his way to reaching the semi-final.
Consequently, he became the first qualifier since 2015 to reach the Cincinnati last four.
Some fun facts about Atmane are that he has an IQ of 158 (so he's pretty smart), and he possesses a gigantic Pokémon collection.
Ahead of his last-four defeat to Sinner, Atmane handed the Italian a Pokémon card as a birthday gift to the Italian.
A pretty heartwarming moment.
Rallies of the tournament
There were a few stunning shots at this year's Cincinnati, including a wonderful Kei Nishikori single-handed backhand, a stunning passing shot from Alcaraz, and a remarkable backhand down the line from Sinner.
Upcoming events
With just five days until the start of the US Open, some top players who are struggling for form are taking the option of playing in tune-up tournaments to gain some late momentum.
Liudmila Samsonova leads the field in Cleveland, while Navarro, Ekaterina Samsonova and Diana Shnaider headline Monterrey.
Winston-Salem hosts an ATP event, which sees the totally out of form Stefanos Tsitsipas as the number one seed.
Meanwhile, in New York, the exciting, revamped US Open mixed doubles tournament gets underway today, lasting just two days. The likes of Alcaraz, Swiatek, Novak Djokovic and Pegula are set to take part in a star-studded lineup.
Follow Cleveland, Monterrey, Winston-Salem, and the US Open mixed doubles with Flashscore!