Iga Swiatek has made quite a revelation in her return to the US Open as the Pole reveals didn’t feel well at all throughout her run at Flushing Meadows in 2022 but still found a way to win and that showed her that she could also win on the biggest stage even in that state.
After winning 37 consecutive matches at one point between February and July, Swiatek suffered back-to-back round-of-16 exits in Toronto and Cincinnati. And going into the 2022 US Open, it was clear that the Pole had dropped in her level – which led to some doubting if she could make a big run in New York.
But when the time came for the final Grand Slam of the year, Swiatek delivered and ended up winning her first title after beating Ons Jabeur in the final 6-2 7-6 (5). En route to winning it all at Flushing Meadows that year, Swiatek also defeated Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula.
However, although Swiatek won the main glory, she wasn’t as dominant as in some parts earlier in 2022. Most notably, she was down by a set to Jule Niemeier in the round-of-16 before coming back to win 2-6 6-4 6-0.
“In 2022, for sure, that was the Grand Slam that I was least chilled at. Even though I won, I didn’t feel comfortable on the court at all. Maybe only, like — yeah, I didn’t feel like at all. I didn’t feel like I can play my game naturally,” Swiatek admitted in her pre-tournament press conference.
“So it would be stupid for me to expect that I’m going to feel it, you know, next years. US Open 2022 actually taught me that I can win even though I’m not feeling 100%. So I wouldn’t say now I’m relaxed, because it’s impossible to be relaxed in New York, especially, you know, with everything that’s going on around.
“It’s pretty loud here. In Cincinnati, for example, we could really focus and just, like, 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.”
