Iga Swiatek: From queen of clay to Wimbledon champion
Against the Polish eighth seed's own expectations, she has added Wimbledon to the four French Open titles she won on the Paris clay and the 2022 US Open crown secured on hard courts in New York.
Swiatek won the junior Wimbledon title seven years ago, but she had never been beyond the quarter-finals in the main event until this year.
Asked if her success had come as a surprise, she said: "Yeah, for sure. Honestly I never even dreamt it was going to be possible for me to play in the final.
"I thought I experienced everything on the court but I didn't experience playing well on grass."
The Wimbledon title was especially sweet for Swiatek after what had been a difficult year by her high standards.
Having won at least one Grand Slam in each of the previous three years, Swiatek endured painful semi-finals exits at the Australian Open and French Open in 2025.
She did not reach a final for a year after winning the 2024 French Open.
Losing in the Olympics semi-finals last year was another blow for Swiatek, who said she cried for "six hours" following the defeat in Paris.
Then in November 2024, Swiatek tested positive for banned substance trimetazidine and was given a one-month suspension after the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted the result was caused by contamination.
Blaze of glory
Her two-year reign as world number one had been ended by Aryna Sabalenka, prompting a change of coach at the end of last year as Wim Fissette replaced Tomasz Wiktorowski.
Those woes were a stark contrast to the blaze of glory that followed her maiden Grand Slam title at the 2020 French Open.
Aged 19 and ranked 54th, Swiatek defeated Sofia Kenin in the final to become the first Polish player to win a major singles title.
Swiatek, whose father is a former rower who competed at the 1988 Olympics, was the youngest French Open women's champion since Monica Seles in 1992.
Three more titles followed at Roland Garros between 2022 and 2024 before Sabalenka ended her unbeaten streak in Paris last month.
But not winning the French Open for the first time since 2021 gave Swiatek more time to prepare on grass, firstly in a training camp in Mallorca before a maiden final on the surface in the tranquil German spa town of Bad Homburg.
Although Jessica Pegula took home the trophy in Germany, Swiatek had laid the foundations for her success at SW19.
"I feel like I have developed as a player and I had time to practise a little bit more," she said.
"I'm not going to have seasons where the pressure is kind of forced on me from the expectations from outside anymore.
"Every year it's kind of the same, but I feel sometimes I can handle it better or ignore it."
Swiatek dropped just one set on her run to glory on the manicured lawns of southwest London.
Her performance in the Centre Court sunshine on Saturday was one for the ages as she became the first player in the Open era to win a Wimbledon final without dropping a game.
© 2025 AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
8 hours ago
- France 24
Sinner eyes golden era after Wimbledon glory
Sinner avenged an agonising French Open final loss against Alcaraz as he battered the Spaniard into submission with a dynamic display of power hitting on Centre Court. The Italian's 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 victory ended Alcaraz's two-year reign as Wimbledon champion and gave Sinner his fourth Grand Slam crown. Sinner has reached the last four Grand Slam finals, winning three of them, and the world number one has no intention of resting on his laurels. "I don't think I'm at my best because at 23 I don't think you can be in your best shape ever. So hopefully I can keep improving," he said. "I keep looking up to Carlos because even today I felt like he was doing couple of things better than I did. "That's something we will work on and prepare ourselves because he's going to come for us again. "We have a big target on us, so we have to be prepared." It was a cathartic triumph for Sinner after he squandered a two-set lead and blew three championship points against Alcaraz at Roland Garros in June. Alcaraz had won five successive encounters against the 23-year-old, including finals in Paris, Rome and Beijing, prior to their showdown at the All England Club. Sinner admitted it was vital to finally beat the world number two for the first time since 2023. "It is important, for sure, because you know, when you lose several times against someone, it's not easy. But in the same time in the past I felt that I was very close," he said. "I never pushed myself down. I felt like I did something great because it has been not easy. Coming here and winning Wimbledon, it has been amazing." 'The rivalry is real' While Sinner had spent the last five weeks publicly insisting he would not let his French Open collapse affect him, he revealed he had to work hard to move on from the loss before launching his Wimbledon challenge. "This is the part where I'm the proudest because it really has not been easy. I always tried to be honest with myself and had the self-talk. You know, what if, what if? I tried to accept it, in a way," said Sinner, who returned from a three-month doping ban in May. "Even if I don't cry, it feels emotional because only me and the people who are close to me know exactly what we have been through on and off the court, and it has been everything except easy. "We've tried to push, you know, every practice session, even I was struggling at times mentally. "That's why I also said after Roland Garros that it's not the time to put me down, no, because another Grand Slam is coming up, and I did great here." Sinner and Alcaraz have won the past seven majors between them, establishing themselves in a class of their own. Sinner's coach Darren Cahill expects the pair to battle for supremacy for years to come, but he stopped short of comparing it to the dynastic era of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. "It's difficult to compare this rivalry to what we've just had. It's been a golden age in tennis with Novak and Roger and Rafa. They dominated for 20 years," Cahill said. "To win a Grand Slam back in those days, you had to beat one of them in the quarters, the other one in the semis, and another one in the final. "These guys still have a ways to go, but they've started incredibly well. Carlos is a big focus, and both of those guys are pushing each other. "The rivalry is real. Hopefully it's going to be there for the next 10 or 12 years."
France 24
9 hours ago
- France 24
Alcaraz will use Sinner rivalry to reach new heights after Wimbledon pain
Alcaraz was beaten 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 by Sinner in the All England Club final, denying the Spaniard a third successive Wimbledon crown. It was a bitter blow for the 22-year-old, who had hoped to follow his epic French Open final triumph against Sinner in June with another victory over the world number one. Instead, it was Sinner who held aloft the trophy after clinching his third title in the last four Grand Slams. While Sinner has won the 2024 US Open and the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year, Alcaraz has only claimed the Roland Garros silverware in the same period. But the world number two believes competing with Sinner is a benefit because it forces him to raise his own game. "I'm just really happy about having this rivalry with him. I think it's great for us, and it is great for tennis," Alcaraz said. "Every time we're playing against each other, I think our level is really high. I think we don't watch a level like this, if I'm honest with you. I don't see any player playing against each other, having the level that we are playing when we face each other." And the El Palmar-native predicted his battles with 23-year-old Sinner will only get better. "As I said many times, this rivalry, it's getting better and better. We're building a really great rivalry because we're playing the finals of a Grand Slam, the final of Masters tournaments," he said. "It's going to be better and better. Just really grateful for that because it gives me the opportunity to give my 100 percent every practice, every day. "Just to be better, thanks to that. The level that I have to maintain and I have to raise if I want to beat Jannik is really high." 'I have to be really proud' Alcaraz's career-best 24-match winning streak was shattered by Sinner, who was also the last player to beat him at Wimbledon, in 2022, before he inflicted more misery in Sunday's showdown. The five-time Grand Slam champion had battled back from two sets down to beat Sinner at the French Open, saving three match points in the process, but this time he couldn't summon up an incredible escape. Rather than feel sorry for himself and let his form drop -- as he did after losing to Novak Djokovic in the Paris Olympic final last year -- Alcaraz is determined to ensure there will be no hangover at the US Open in August. "It's a different feeling. Last year in the Olympics I was really bad emotionally after the match. It was really hard for me to accept that moment," he said. "I think in the last year I've been through in different situations that I learned from them. I accept everything that is coming to me." Despite losing in the title match of a major for the first time, Alcaraz vowed to keep his head high. "Like, okay, I lost a final in a Grand Slam, but I have to be really proud about being in a final. I want to keep the good moments and try to forget the bad moments," he explained. "So right now I'm just, as I said, I'm not bad at all. I'm just happy. I'm smiling because in my head it was about playing the final and being grateful for that." © 2025 AFP
France 24
11 hours ago
- France 24
Paris pain inspired Sinner's Wimbledon triumph against Alcaraz
Sinner beat Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 on Centre Court to win Wimbledon for the first time and avenge his agonising five-set defeat to the Spaniard in the Roland Garros showpiece in June. The world number one blew a two-set lead and wasted three championship points in an epic collapse in Paris, but he held his nerve in the rematch at the All England Club. "I would say mostly emotionally because I had a very tough loss in Paris. But it doesn't matter how you win or lose, you just have to understand what you did wrong and try to work on it," the 23-year-old said. "This is what we did. This is one of the reasons I'm here holding this trophy." Sinner is the first Italian man to win Wimbledon, ending Alcaraz's two-year reign as champion. "It's so special. We were talking before the match. We would never have thought of being in this position back in the days when I was young," said the four-time Grand Slam winner. "It was just a dream. This was so far away from where I am from." Alcaraz had no complaints about the end of his 24-match winning streak, a blistering run that brought him titles at the French Open, Rome, Monte Carlo and Queen's Club. "It's difficult to lose but first of all I have to congratulate Jannik. It is a really well deserved trophy. He was playing great tennis," the world number two said. "Really happy to be able to build a really good relationship with him off the court and a great rivalry on the court." Alcaraz, a five-time Grand Slam champion, was beaten in a major final for the first time, but he had no regrets after falling short of a third successive Wimbledon crown. "Really proud of everything I'm doing. At the beginning of the season I struggled a bit and then suddenly I started to bring joy to the court again," he said. "Wimbledon is one of the most beautiful tournaments that we have on tour. I feel at home every time that I come here. "It is such a beautiful court. The atmosphere is insane. It's a great journey so far. I just want to keep it going."
