Polish tennis star Iga Swiatek has been compared to a “scared deer.” The reason? Her recent fall at Flushing Meadows and an emotional outburst afterward. Now, a former American player decodes her on-court attitude, revealing two sides of her mentality. Offering an assessment of her dual nature, this former pro sheds light on why it might impact the WTA number one’s career. It also raises another question: Is Iga Swiatek a victim of tennis’ hectic scheduling?
Alexandra Stevenson had an interesting revelation after observing Swiatek’s performance. The Polish player experienced a disappointing setback in the 2024 US Open, losing to Jessica Pegula in the quarterfinals. She was visibly upset in her locker room afterward. Stevenson pointed out a duality in Swiatek’s nature, which she believes affects the Polish player’s on-court results. In a conversation with Hughes Laverdiere, Stevenson discussed Swiatek’s weaknesses.
“We are talking about Iga Swiatek being all wound up and like stressed out. It’s interesting when she plays her best tennis that her being wound up in tennis works for her but it’s a different kind of intensity as to when she is like the scared deer, scared rabbit, you can see the difference between the two. And its very interesting because she is not even totally negative but she is slightly defeated and panicky, right? But then the intensity when she is walking around quick and getting things done, that’s like a high level of positive like okay, that’s her personality,” said Stevenson.
The WTA number one has won five singles titles this season, including the 2024 Italian Open and French Open, earning praise for her brilliant performances. However, since Wimbledon, she started making errors, ultimately exiting the British Grand Slam in the third round. She regained her form, reaching the semifinals of the Cincinnati Masters, but things didn’t go as planned. Now, Swiatek is taking time off, skipping both the 2024 China Open and Shanghai Open.
Swiatek has expressed concerns about the hectic scheduling and its impact on her mental state. Could this be the reason behind her loss of confidence? She opened up about her feelings, delving deeper into the issue.
During her press conference at the 2024 US Open, Swiatek offered a clear statement about her opinion on the matter. “I think players are aware that this is crazy what’s going on, and the schedule is really tough. I know that, I mean, I spoke about it in Cincinnati, for example, and there are people saying that, oh, I don’t have to play so many tournaments, but truth, like the fact is that we have so many mandatory tournaments that we literally need to, you know, show up and we don’t have time to, like, work on stuff or, like believe peacefully, because from one tournament we’re going straight to another,” she said. Swiatek’s statement aligned with many players like Carlos Alcaraz who complained about their stress and mental health.
She believes players could deliver better performances if their pleas were heard. However, she mentioned that players are not always made aware of mandatory rules and their changes, as they have limited influence over the system.
Alexandra Stevenson’s remarks highlight Swiatek’s intriguing personality, though they may stem from the pressure of being ranked number one. Nonetheless, Swiatek remains a talented player, and the tennis world is eager to see her return to peak form after this break. The question now is when she will play her next tournament. Are you excited for that?