Iga Swiatek has racked up so many points this season that he has already qualified for the WTA Finals. In addition to getting his second Roland Garros, has secured the first position in the ranking. A few days ago we learned of his decision to participate in Wimbledon without playing any preparatory tournament before, something risky considering his background.
It is not the first time that a WTA tennis player who has been stomping has been destabilized when changing surfaces. the former player Barbara Rittner He spoke about it on the podcast The yellow from the ball. “The biggest challenge right now is the grass,” she said. “Iga has shown what he is capable of on hard courts, he has impressively shown that he can continue without issue on clay.”
An uncertain future at Wimbledon
Admittedly, getting to Wimbledon without having competed on grass can be tricky for the ranking leader, who has a bittersweet track record in the tournament. Despite the fact that the Pole is doing a year to frame, the figures of her previous years at Wimbledon leave something to be desired. “Clay has always been the best surface on her. On grass, she lost to Ons Jabeur in the fourth round at Wimbledon last year, admittedly in three sets, but 1-6 and 1-6 in the second and third sets.”
Nevertheless, Swiatek won there in 2018 in the youth categoryjust four years ago. Clear sign that grass is also among his skills from the beginning. Iga Swiatek heads to Wimbledon unprepared on the grass court, but arrives with a Musketeers cup under her arm. “It was remarkable how he managed to deal with these incredibly high expectations at only 21 years of age,” Ritter said.
Ritter is clear that the Pole is capable of “finding ways to deal with difficult situations even during the tournament. We will have to wait only a few weeks to see if Swiatek will give the surprise. Her numbers do not guarantee her, since she of her 9 individual titles none is on this surface. Iga doesn’t know what it’s like to lift a title on the green, yet.
Why is surface change so difficult?
It is important to be clear that the commotion and doubts arise because the differences between clay and grass are remarkable. Since clay encourages a higher bounce and slower play, players with better physiques tend to get the best numbers. Swiatek has more than shown that he dominates this surface to perfection. However, it is now that he must demonstrate his talent and bring out his technique. The speed of grass only leaves room for the most skilled players.
Grass is the complete opposite of clay. Resistance is important, but even more so is intuition and knowing how to close points faster. Although it is true that in recent years the differences have been shortened. As you have commented Navratilova on occasion “there’s not as much difference between clay and grass as there used to be,” he said. “Clay courts are playing faster, with the use of lighter balls, and grass is playing slower,” he added.
He has also spoken about it Brad Gilbert, former player who reached the quarter-finals at the All England Club in 1990 and who has coached tennis greats such as Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick and Andy Murray, skilled on grass. The American has explained other reasons why the transition between clay and green is complicated. He has stressed that “you have very little time.” “To go from clay to grass, you have three weeks to get it down. It used to be only two weeks, so at least that’s something. It remains the hardest surface in the nuances of movement. You can’t track balls as well as on other surfaces,” he added.
Despite the difficulties, Swiatek has options, as shown by other tennis players who have excelled on clay and on grass. It is the case of Simona Halep y Garbiñe Muguruza. In addition to others such as the Wimbledon champions, Petra Kvitova y Angelique Kerber, who have also performed well at the French Open. In less than two weeks it will become clear if Swiatek’s training on grass pays off. Although it should be mentioned that the Pole clarified in Paris that she has no expectations for this third Grand Slam of the year.
