Iga Swiatek has praised her opponent Coco Gauff after the latter defeated the world No. 1 for the first time in her career in the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Open.

As the top seed, Swiatek was the favorite to win the match and advance to the final of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, but world No. 7 Gauff came through to secure her first ever victory against the four-time Grand Slam champion, winning 7-6(2), 3-6, 6-4.

Speaking after the match, Gauff expressed her joy at finally defeating Swiatek, who had a 7-0 lead in their head-to-head prior to Cincinnati, saying that the win gave her confidence in her ability to beat the very best in the world.

"I think it gives me confidence that I have the ability. I mean, she's a four-time Grand Slam champion, No. 1. It shows that I can be at that level or compete with that level at least," she said.

Swiatek also gave her thoughts on the match and praised Gauff's ability, particularly her first serve.

"Coco [Gauff], for sure she played great tennis. I have to check, but I think her first serve was better than most of the matches we played against each other, faster. She played more in [the court], even though she's risking with that speed," she said.

The 22-year-old added that for her part, she didn't know what else she could have done on a technical level to win the match, but that sometimes difficult days happen, and with Gauff playing well she admitted it was not an easy game.

"I thought, technically, I did everything right. I was kind of surprised that I missed couple of shots. But it happens. She really played a good match, so... It wasn't easy," Swiatek continued.

19-year-old Gauff will now go on to face Karolina Muchova in her first WTA 1000 tournament final and will be hoping to add to her success by lifting the trophy here ahead of the US Open.