Iga Swiatek leaves Rome as the hottest player in the game of tennis, having won 12 titles in a row and this time becoming the third woman in history to claim the prestigious titles of Madrid and Rome respectively.
The 22-year-old will head to Paris to try and become the second woman in history to win the clay court treble by winning Madrid, Rome and Paris in the same season. Only the 23-year-old Grand Slam champion, Serena Williams, in 2013, has achieved this previously.
Although Swiatek will be the heavy favourite, the three-time Roland Garros champion prefers to keep his focus on manageable things. He repeatedly talks about the process, staying humble, and backs up his words by not underestimating his opponent.
Sounds a lot like 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal in a lot of ways, doesn't it?
“Obviously I'm confident. “I feel like I'm playing good tennis,” said Swiatek on Saturday after defeating Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 6-3. “But it doesn't change the fact that I really want to stay humble and focus on getting everything step by step. Grand Slams are different. There are different pressures on the court and off the court.”
Now 36-4 on the season, and 14-1 on clay (77-10 lifetime), Swiatek credits the work he's done to improving his performance to help him win matches at the biggest stages this spring.
She lost only 18 points against Sabalenka and saved seven break points she faced. It is a sign that he is able to play a high percentage of service points on his own terms, allowing him to decide and control early and often.
“Overall I try to treat these points like any other point. I don't feel that much pressure,” he said about the break points he saved from Sabalenka as he claimed his 21st title. “Maybe because I know that I am a person who comes back, or I will break and not be able to fix it.
“I think that in this tournament, my serve was helping me a lot. All the work we were doing paid off in those important moments. I'm very happy with that because that's what we've been working for.”
Swiatek will look to progress in Paris, where he has won 25 of 26 matches since his 2020 title campaign. The Pole is on a 14-match Paris winning streak and will be looking to become the first woman to win. three consecutive Roland Garros titles since Justine Henin in 2007.
He says that he is not under pressure this year because he is not thinking too much about ranking people but he is not thinking too much about being trapped in this program.
“I was calm because I knew that if I will work hard and if I will have the right mindset, this can be achieved,” he said. “I'm happy that I was focused and guided myself throughout the tournament to do that. I feel like I'm in the right place.”
It all adds up to a great opportunity for Swiatek, and a very long career for anyone who has designs on landing him in Paris…
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