Iga Swiatek believes she is doing a ‘good job’ in dealing with distractions surrounding her No.1 status.
The 22-year-old recently celebrated her 90th week at the top of the WTA standings. A milestone that has been achieved by just nine other women in history. Swiatek continuously held the top spot between April 3rd 2022 and September 10th 2023 before being dethroned by Aryna Sabalenka. She then reclaimed the No.1 spot on November 6th last year and has held that position ever since.
Besides being the frontrunner in her sport, Swiatek admits some challenges could derail her momentum on the Tour. One example is social media which she uses only for a limited time during tournaments due to the threat of comments affecting her.
“I would say I’m doing a good job separating that,” she told reporters in Dubai on Sunday when asked if her No.1 status can distract her.
“I don’t use really social media during the tournaments. I just post my stuff and that’s all. When I go on social media it can distract a person.
“I would say also when you start having successes, it’s easy to focus on the business part of the sport and forget what you are actually here to do, the work that you should put in.”
Swiatek admits how she approaches the sport is based on her previous mistakes. Something she has been able to overcome with the help of her team.
“I remember after I won my first Roland Garros, two months I was going the wrong path.” She said.
“The practices weren’t a priority in my schedule, in my head. I remember my team had to kind of push me right back on the right path.
“Social media and the Internet can distract you, and this business side of sport, if you don’t balance it well.”
The Pole shed light on coping with the pressure of being No.1 during a pre-tournament press conference in Dubai that took place less than 24 hours after she won her latest title in another country. At the Doha Open on Saturday, Swiatek became the first woman to win the tournament for a third time after beating Elena Rybakina in straight sets. She now has 18 WTA trophies to her name, including four Grand Slams.
It is a very quick turnaround for Swiatek who is aware that short time between tournaments could lead to an increase in injury. However, she is still high in confidence heading into her latest event.
“There’s no point in professional sports to overthink it or try to see the future ’cause I’m well-prepared physically,” Swiatek stated.
“It also depends on what the intensity of the matches will be. In Doha, I would say the final was pretty intense, but the other matches I had under control. It’s not like I played three-setters.”
Swiatek is hoping to go one step further in Dubai this year after reaching the final 12 months ago before losing to Barbora Krejcikova. It will be her fourth appearance at the event. In 2021 she reached the second round followed by the third round in 2022.
“I don’t think there’s a huge difference between this tournament and the others. I’m just going to take it easy, step by step, see how it’s going to look like after a couple of days.” She concluded.
Granted a bye in the first round, Swiatek will start her campaign against Sloane Stephens who beat Clara Burel 6-4, 1-6, 6-2, in her opening match.
