The Polish Iga Swiatek arrived at the Porte d’Auteuil with a huge favorite’s sign on her shoulders. Her last defeat dating back to February 16, in Dubai against the Latvian Ostapenko (6-4, 1-6, 6-7), the undisputed world No. 1 has since won five consecutive tournaments (Qatar, Indian Wells, Miami, Stuttgart, Rome).
The young Polish star, sensational world No. 1, had dark years before becoming the best. On the eve of her entry into Rome, she confides…
An injury that almost compromised everything
Iga Swiatek, who has been the head of women’s tennis for many months, has experienced many difficulties in previous years, particularly in 2014 when she came very close to an early end to her career.
“At 14, I was immobile for 8 months because of an ankle injury, without even knowing I would be able to start playing again.
At that point I was convinced that I would never play tennis again because I was a teenager and the important thing was that the operation went well. I didn’t always know that I was going to become a professional and every year I needed to prove to myself that I was going in the right direction.
And I didn’t really believe it until I got on the WTA Tour and won a few matches. At that time there was the problem that my father and I didn’t even know if we would have the money to continue.
After the injury it was a bit like starting all over again because when this kind of thing happens your life changes all of a sudden. I’m really happy that we succeeded and also found the resources to be able to train physically, train on the field and find coaches.”
With courage, strength of character and constant determination, Iga Swiatek has gradually forgotten her teenage worries to become the best player today.
Beaten by Aryna Sabalenka in Madrid, playing very well, the Polish player arrives in Rome as favourite, on a slower surface, which should suit her better.
“In all honesty, I think the level in the circuit is rising and every year we play better and better. So we have to keep up the pace and therefore continually progress, improve.
It’s tough. It’s always tough. It’s not enough to look at how the final went last year against Ons Jabeur. Beyond what the score says, the match was still very hard-fought. I remember a very physical match, where every point was important