DOHA: This is where it all started for Iga Swiatek - at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open - exactly 12 months ago. The Pole's season in the sun. Her 37-match winning streak, a run that brought her six titles and elevated her to the world No. 1 ranking. A year in which she won two Grand Slam titles — Roland Garros and the US Open.
The 21-year-old's wordplay, however, is quizzical. "Last season was so strange, it can actually mess withyour head a little bit," Swiatek said of a run that brought her eight titles in all.
It was from that 'strange' space, heightened expectations, that she came away with her biggest lessons.
Swiatek, who opens her campaign here in the second round, most likely against American Danielle Collins on Wednesday, said her focus was on lowering expectations for herself.
"I'm not going to play perfectly all the time," she said. "I really want to get both feet on the ground, just focus on hard work and what I have to do on the court."
Swiatek, who arrived for her media conference in cycling shorts, a style sheowns, is not comparing seasons. "I feel like every year is a different story, every tournament is a different story," she said. "It doesn't make sense for me to think about last year's tournament and think that it's the same story. It's not, a lot can happen in one year. I want to start this tournament as any other player, we all start from the same spot," she said.
Swiatek pressed the reset button post the Australian Open, where she fell in straight sets to Elena Rybakina in the round-of-16 in January. The world No. 1, placed at No. 21 in the WTA Race as she went without a title in her first two starts, fell to Jessica Pegula, winning just fourgames in the United Cup Down Under.
"I feel like I'm still at the same spot, I tried to look at the race and focus on actually competing with other players. I feel like looking at the race is going to help me look forward and not at what happened in the past. "
The rankings, which takes into account a 12-month cycle, rewards consistency, which has long been Swiatek's goalpost.
FEELING THE PRESSURE
That No. 1 spot, however, isn't without baggage.
"Sometimes you can feel the pressure, every player wants to play their best game against you," she said. "There are moments where I feel like there is a little bit too much baggage on my shoulders, but most of the time I feel like I'm still the same player who wants to just improve."
Swiatek struggled with expectations after her maiden Grand Slam title in Roland Garros in 2020, she finds herself in a similar position today, at the start of a stretch that saw her win six titles.
"I felt like I should show that kind of tennis in every tournament," she said of almost three years ago. "Then I worked hard getting my expectations lower, pretty similar to what I'm trying to do now."
