Iga Swiatek, world number one, talks about what has been a demanding season and criticizes the changes to the calendar that the WTA has made for next year. Additionally, the Pole talks about the pressure in that fight with Aryna Sabalenka for number one.
“It has undoubtedly been a demanding season that has taught me a lot and of which I feel even more proud,” Iga Swiatek explains to Eurosport in an interview in which she admits a change of mentality after having fallen so early in the fourth round of the US Open. Even so, the current world number one takes away many valuable lessons from a 2023 in which she has had to deal with the expectations of both the outside world and herself.
Aryna maintained the first place after the last Grand Slam of the season, and in the WTA Finals she had in her power to maintain the first position, but Iga brought out her best level to recover it: “I am very proud of the fact that she returned to No. 1 and that it happened in Cancun with all the pressure and strange circumstances,” says the Pole, who has been involved with the Belarusian in a beautiful fight for first place throughout the year.
THE PRESSURE FOR NUMBER ONE
“She deserved it, she has had a great season. She won one Grand Slam, she was in the final of another. She’s had an amazing year,” Swiatek says of Aryna. “I just preferred to focus on other things, because the pressure related to the number one spot was a bit overwhelming in the middle of the season. For this reason, I didn’t play loose until the US Open. So, I knew I had to change that attitude and approach the following tournaments differently. Being a different player who doesn’t focus on those things. “I always try to do it, but it doesn’t always work.”
ABOUT THE CALENDAR
“The calendar is changing so that we have more and more obligations, to spend even more energy that we will have to dedicate while participating in the tournaments, because the tournaments are also getting longer. It is simply not conducive to what the WTA promotes in other aspects, mental health, vital balance in any sense, physical health… I would make decisions more favorable to what they promote and support.”
2023-12-08 08:43:49
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