In the days leading up to the 2020 French Open, Iga Swiatek was struggling through one of the biggest crises of her career. Having started the Covid-delayed autumn clay-court season with lofty hopes in her first year since graduating from high school, expectations were high. But in her final warmup event, the Italian Open, she endured a desperate, “traumatic” defeat against Arantxa Rus, the world No 71, in the first round.
Swiatek retreated back to Poland with her small team, where they held talks about her direction and progress. Doubt festered in her mind. When she arrived at Roland Garros, the then 18-year-old struggled through practice, unable to escape her negative spiral. Her mood was so low that she made a bet with her sports psychologist, Daria Abramowicz, to see if she could just get through one training session without any drama. Swiatek spent the days before the tournament questioning her future.
“I remember just being on the Jean Bouin [Roland Garros practice courts] before the tournament, practising there,” Swiatek said last month. “I literally had the talk with Daria if it makes sense to continue everything because I felt so bad. I felt like, I don’t know, my expectations were just pretty high. I felt really bad on court. Always tense and stressed, even when I was practising.”
Two weeks later Swiatek won the French Open aged 19, and ranked No 54. It was both her first grand slam title and her first tour level title, which she clinched by demolishing the field, losing only 28 games in seven matches and not coming close to conceding a set.
As joyful as her first grand slam title was, Swiatek also struggled to wrap her mind around her transformation. It had taken place in the early days of the Covid pandemic, with just 1,000 spectators allowed on the grounds each day. The whole scenario felt strange. In the years since she has often described feeling that aspects of her first win were “coincidental”. She felt she needed to win the French Open again in order to confirm the victory.
After recovering from a break down in the deciding set to defeat Karolina Muchova 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 in the final on Saturday, Swiatek is now a three-time champion in Paris and a four-time grand slam title winner at 22 years old. There are no remaining doubts about her greatness.
While there are no guarantees for the future, the early years indicate she is on the path to a generational career. Her 28-2 (93%) Roland Garros record alone is astounding. Her career win-loss record is 248-61 (80%). An 80% win rate is the marker of sustained excellence.
The manner of her win felt even more meaningful because of the fortitude required. Beyond Serena Williams, there have been few frontrunners as accomplished as Swiatek in recent years. She has mastered the art of tearing through draws and smothering opponents with her skills in attack and defence. Learning to become similarly effective when things turn against her and she finds herself in a dogfight has been a work in progress.
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Against Muchova, the way in which Swiatek locked down her game and struck her return of serve while trailing 4-3 in the third set was as spectacular as the many times she has crushed opponents with her vicious, heavy topspin forehand.
The circumstances around each of Swiatek’s Roland Garros triumphs have been starkly different. After her teenage breakthrough in 2020, in 2022 she arrived under the intense pressure of her historic 37-match winning run, desperate to ensure it was not a slamless streak. This year she faced the challenge of following up her superb season and maintaining her spot at the top of her sport. Had Aryna Sabalenka merely matched her performance in Paris, she would have lost her No 1 ranking.
A few hours after her latest victory, Swiatek sat down amongt a small circle of journalists for what may well become an annual casual post-victory chat. Even after her toughest grand slam final yet, she seemed far less drained by her achievement than in previous years, perhaps more prepared for what is to come next. After a short break she will begin her preparations for the grass-court season as she looks to become more comfortable on her worst surface, and to move closer to greatness by winning Wimbledon for the first time.
