Swiatek and her big change: "I want to play other tournaments with the same attitude as in Paris"

Carlos Navarro | 18 Jun 2025 | 09.33

Iga Swiatek. Source: Getty

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She has gone from being the undisputed number one queen of the circuit to being number eight, but Iga Swiatek has finally found some peace. Calm. The mental burden, after Roland Garros 2025, has become much lighter: no more living under constant scrutiny, dealing with questions about defending titles and points, or being in the eye of the storm. Further away from the media spotlight, the Polish player now pursues a clear goal: to work on the changes she has implemented, alongside Wim Fissette, and to become mentally stronger to challenge for major titles and higher rankings.

All this, of course, does not come easily. In Paris, she took a step forward, reaching the brink of the title match after semifinals where there were clear signs of improvement. She will want to forget the third set, but Iga, as she confesses in an interview with Sport PL, feels satisfied with how she approached the second Grand Slam of the season: she also believes she has taken a step forward.

"My feelings are positive, especially when I look back. I arrived in Paris with renewed energy: my match against Rybakina, in particular, where I faced difficulties, showed that I have the strength and ability to overcome such challenges. Then I played another solid match against Svitolina, and I think the one against Sabalenka was also very good. I didn't get the result I wanted, but I lost to the world number one. I'm happy: it was a step in the right direction."

By no means does this distance Swiatek from a very clear dictum: "It's time to focus on the current work." Leaving behind the pressure from the media and the public, Iga admits that the early defeat in Rome against Collins was, fundamentally, a stroke of luck: it allowed her to "confront what she disliked on the court". With time to address these issues, Swiatek is very clear that at Roland Garros, "the positive effects were seen" from that long pause and introspective look.

THE PRESSURE OF RANKINGS, CHANGES WITH FISSETTE, AND THE RUMOR OF "TAKING A BREAK"

We were talking in the first lines about how Iga's drop in the rankings could be somewhat helpful, perhaps by allowing her to shift the media spotlight away from her head. However, Swiatek herself admits that the ranking does not play a very important role, neither for better nor for worse. "I don't think about it every day, my perspective hasn't changed: even when I was on top, I always said I wouldn't focus on the ranking. When I returned in February after the Australian Open, I had a moment of disappointment regarding how I lost my ranking. However, there I chose to focus on the work. I think many girls had gotten used to being higher up, and I did too for a while. Sports work differently, and everyone knows that not everything stays the same: there are players who improve, there is constant competition. I won't always be the first. I know my abilities and what I can show on the court, and the fact that I play with a number next to my name doesn't change that."

It is a renewed approach that, in part, responds to her collaboration with Wim Fissette. Swiatek bets on the long term and is aware that, at this stage of her career, it is in the "details" where the key to her work and evolution lies. "There have been no major changes like when I parted ways with Sierzputowski and started working with Wiktorowski. Back then I was younger and had fewer tools, the progress was more visible. Over these years, I have learned a lot, there will be fewer novelties, there won't be a tennis 'Eureka' moment. It's the details I focus on: we've slightly changed the position for fast balls to my right, which has helped me a lot, as my grip needs more attention on such shots. We have also worked on the serve; you can see that I now serve a bit better to the backhand, and that makes me very happy, but it's primarily the details that we fine-tune."

Another major point of interest surrounding Swiatek arose just a couple of months ago when the Polish press itself started a rumor that does not seem to be materializing: the possibility of Iga taking a long break and deciding to skip Wimbledon. She completely denies it: "I don’t feel the need to take a break. Even in the past, when I did feel like it, I continued working and had very satisfying moments. I don't think it's a good solution: I know how difficult it is to return to the circuit. I prefer to keep going and build my process; tennis is very demanding and maybe I'll skip a couple of tournaments to come back with renewed energy, but I don't want to take a long break to live differently. There will be time for that; right now, I'm very happy with my life."

A life whose next goal is Wimbledon but has undergone significant changes in under a year. The million-dollar question, to conclude, is clear: what is Iga Swiatek's main goal in the coming weeks and months? "A time of peace, where I can take several steps forward and compete against the world's best without any brakes due to various reasons. I would like to participate in more tournaments and maintain the same attitude I had at Roland Garros, implementing what I have adapted to. I would love for that to generate results, but I don't want to expect anything; I'm going to work on it, that's for sure." Will Iga 2.0 show up at Wimbledon? Only time will tell.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Swiatek y su gran cambio: "Quiero jugar otros torneos con la misma actitud que en París"