No.1 Swiatek focused on the grind as US Open campaign begins

NEW YORK — Iga Swiatek’s relationship with the US Open is…complicated.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the Cincinnati Open last week, the World No.1 joked that she had no idea how she actually won the tournament in 2022. The balls were too light, the court was too fast, the pressure was too high. It was two weeks of an unsettling swirl of noise, frustration, and expectation, which tends not to sit well for the introverted Swiatek, who would rather spend her days sitting in the park with a good book.

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Speaking this week ahead of this year’s US Open, the World No.1 is still trying to figure out her recipe for New York success.

“In 2022, for sure, that was the Grand Slam that I was least chilled at,” Swiatek told reporters at US Open Media Day. “Even though I won, I didn’t feel comfortable on the court at all. I didn’t feel like I can play my game naturally.”

That 2022 season was a wild one for Swiatek. Ashleigh Barty retired out of nowhere, Swiatek was foisted into the No.1 position, and she proceeded to rip off 37 consecutive wins, the longest streak of the century. In the midst of what was understandable mental and physical fatigue, she overcame two early losses that summer to run the table in New York, beating Aryna Sabalenka in three dramatic sets in the semifinals and Ons Jabeur in the final.

Last year, there was a different pressure. She arrived in New York with her World No.1 ranking under threat. Sure enough, after a three-set loss to Jelena Ostapenko in the Round of 16, Swiatek saw her 75-week reign at the top end.

“Last year I felt I had many things to defend, like World No.1 position, all my points, and also the title itself,” Swiatek said. “I felt like I had a lot of baggage on my shoulders.

“This year it’s a little bit different. This year I’m just trying to focus on what should I do tennis-wise to play the best game possible. My expectations are not, like, so high compared to last year.”

Swiatek comes into the final Grand Slam of the year off two solid results. She took home bronze at the Paris 2024 Olympics, losing in the semifinals to eventual gold medalist Zheng Qinwen. Then in her next event, she surprised herself by making the semifinals on the lightning-quick courts of Cincinnati, losing 6-3, 6-3 to eventual champion Aryna Sabalenka.

It’s a credit to her well-earned aura of invincibility, that back-to-back semifinals can somehow be construed by outsiders as a crisis. At just 23, Swiatek has already amassed 22 Hologic WTA Tour titles, including five Grand Slam trophies. For comparison, No.2 Aryna Sabalenka has won 15 titles. No.3 Coco Gauff has won seven, No.4 Elena Rybakina has snagged eight and No.5 Jasmine Paolini has two. All but Gauff are older than Swiatek.

“US Open 2022 actually taught me that I can win even though I’m not feeling 100 percent,” Swiatek said. “So I wouldn’t say now I’m relaxed, because it’s impossible to be relaxed in New York, especially with everything that’s going on around.

“It’s pretty loud here. In Cincinnati, for example, we could really focus and the priority every day was basically the practice. Here, you have so many activities off the court, you need to balance it wisely, and the practice is always going to be a priority, but you have so many things to also think about.”

There are reasons to believe that things will be calmer for Swiatek this year. She has opted to stay closer to Central Park so she can readily find some peace and quiet. For those keeping track of Swiatek’s reading habits, she’s currently working her way through “Out of Africa” by Karen Blixen. She has already sewn up qualification for the WTA Finals Riyadh, where she is the defending champion.

And, after a summer that saw last year’s US Open runner-up Aryna Sabalenka run through the draw without dropping a set to win Cincinnati, Swiatek comes into New York, seemingly under the radar. That won’t bother her one bit.

“[My expectations] are a little bit lower because I know it’s been a really intense season, and after the Olympics, it hasn’t been easy,” Swiatek said. “So I feel the best when I’m just focused on practicing and grinding on the court and really focus on just making my game better and not on the results.”

Swiatek will open her tournament against No.104 Kamilla Rakhimova in the first round on Tuesday.