Swiatek: "The best way to compete is not to look at the scoreboard"
The Polish player reflects on interesting topics from the competitive daily life of a professional tennis player and showers high praise on Karolina Muchova, her upcoming opponent at Indian Wells 2026.
The maximum demand that she imposes on herself is enormous and can become a double-edged sword at a mental level, so Iga Swiatek is forced to come up with ways to strengthen her mindset in top-level matches, like the ones she is playing in Indian Wells 2026. She spoke about this in a press conference where she referred to Karolina Muchova, her upcoming opponent.
Iga Swiatek continues to show increasingly solid performances at Indian Wells 2026. The world number two delivered a convincing performance to advance, standing out for her aggressiveness on returns and better management of playing conditions. After the match, the Polish player analyzed the improvements she has made compared to previous tournaments, explained how she mentally handles the most demanding matches, and also discussed the challenge of facing Karolina Muchova in the next round.
This is what Iga Swiatek said after reaching the round of 16 at Indian Wells 2026
Learning from Doha and better adaptation to the conditions
Swiatek explained that part of her good performance at Indian Wells is related to the lessons learned in previous tournaments, especially in Doha, where she had struggled to handle certain game situations. "I think today I adapted better to short balls than in Doha," said the Polish player, recalling the mistakes she made in that tournament.
"I remember it was quite frustrating to make errors with those shots," she added. In addition to this technical improvement, she also highlighted her adaptation to the environmental conditions of the match. "I also understood the wind better," said the world number one. "I just think I learned the lesson from that match in Doha, and I'm happy I could improve," she explained.
A more solid serve and aggressive returns
Beyond managing short balls, the Polish player also identified other aspects of her game that made a difference during the match. "I think I served better," Swiatek explained, also emphasizing the accuracy of her returns. "The returns were also very good," she added. The world number one recalled that in Doha, she had struggled to cleanly hit the ball at times in the match, something that did not happen this time. "Today I felt I could really pressure Maria," she stated. "I had good timing and could play freely," she assured.
The importance of not obsessing over the score
One of the most interesting aspects of the press conference came when Swiatek talked about her way of interpreting matches beyond the partial result. For the Polish player, the score does not always reflect the real level of play within a match. "The level and the score don't always go together," she explained.
"You can play very well against a tough opponent, and yet the result can be very close," she added. For that reason, she tries to focus more on her tennis than on the score evolution. "The best way to approach it is not to look at the score at all," the Polish player affirmed. "You don't want to react when you're losing because you have to fight for every point equally, but you also don't want to react when you're winning," she pointed out.
Calendar planning and on-court work
The Polish player also discussed her calendar planning, especially after not participating in both Doha and Dubai this season, something that hadn't happened since 2021. Swiatek explained that the decision was related to the need to spend more time on-court training. "I felt I needed time on the practice court," she commented.
She used that additional time to engage in an intense training block in her country. "I was able to have a solid training block in Warsaw," she affirmed. "That always helps," she added. For Swiatek, the key lies in adapting the planning to the needs of each moment. "Sometimes we have to react to what we need at that specific moment," she explained.
A new duel with Karolina Muchova
In the next round, Swiatek will face Karolina Muchova, a player with whom she has played some of the most demanding matches of her career. Although the head-to-head record favors the Polish player, Swiatek made it clear that she expects a very close match. "I don't want to expect anything just based on the head-to-head record," acknowledged the world number one.
"I can remember matches where I was down a break in the third set," she added. Still, she stated that she particularly enjoys facing the Czech player. "She's an incredible player," she affirmed. "I love playing against her and also watching her play," she explained. She even allowed herself a striking comparison to describe her style. "She's like the Roger Federer of women's tennis," she concluded.
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