Iga Swiatek secured her first WTA title of the season with a straight-set victory over Elena Rybakina in the final of the Canadian Open on Thursday.

The six-time Grand Slam winner was cheered on by the crowd in Toronto as she beat world number two Rybakina 6-2 6-3.

Australian Open champion Rybakina struggled in the opening set and made 12 unforced errors, while Swiatek, 25, broke the Kazakhstan player’s serve twice – and saved two break points of her own.

In the second set, Rybakina, 27, was unable to break world number eight Swiatek, and the Polish player clinched her 26th career title in one hour and 15 minutes.

“It means so, so much to me because the past months were not easy,” said Swiatek, who will return to the top five in the rankings following her first Canadian final victory.

It has been a tough campaign for Swiatek, who will be looking to claim her first Grand Slam title since her dominant win in the Wimbledon final last year when the US Open starts later this month.

She advanced to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open in Melbourne in January but was beaten by eventual champion Rybakina. In the French Open and this year’s Wimbledon, she only reached the fourth and third rounds respectively.

She appointed Spaniard Francisco Roig, who previously worked with Rafael Nadal and Emma Raducanu, to her coaching team in April.

Swiatek says it can be challenging to contend with external criticism while searching for her best form.

“I’m really happy that I kept focusing on growing, changing my game a little bit, improving despite all the opinions that many people have about me every day on the internet,” said Swiatek.

“It’s not easy to deal with all of that.”