Iga Swiatek says it would be ‘nice’ for players to have the opportunity to play one less mandatory event if they are also participating in the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
The world No.2 believes a sort of agreement between tennis governing bodies would help ease the workload for her and others. This year was the first time the Billie Jean King Cup Finals were played at the start of the Asian swing in Shenzhen, China. Italy sealed the title on Sunday by beating America 2-0.
As it currently stands, those who took part in the week-long team event are still required to fulfill their commitments on the WTA Tour if they are fit to do so. Players could be expected to play up to 21 tournaments over a year. Four of which are the Grand Slams and the 10 WTA 1000’s. On top of this, the higher-ranked players are required to play six mandatory WTA 500 events, including the United Cup.
Swiatek, who has frequently called for a reduction in the Tour calendar, suggests that the BJK Cup Finals should be regarded as a mandatory event by the WTA, so players can play one less event.
“I think it’s a good decision in terms of the scheduling because it’s just tough in November for a player who don’t play the WTA Finals to be kind of still in the season for more weeks and not be able to go on vacation,” Swiatek said of the BJK Cup finals being held in September.
“The question is if finally maybe the ITF and WTA talk together and maybe these players don’t have to play these six mandatory 500s, or five, because they have one week less to do that. That’s the question.
“I don’t know these rules. If WTA treated this as another tournament, maybe let them (players) not have the six mandatory 500s, I think it would be nice. But I have no idea how it is.”
The flaw in this idea is that the BJK Cup is overseen by the International Tennis Federation, and those taking part are not entitled to any ranking points. So if Swiatek’s idea was to be put into action, it is possible that those who don’t participate in a team event could be better off in terms of earning points potential. There has been no public discussion from tennis’ governing bodies about this happening.
Swiatek returns to action at the China Open, where she is the top seed. The Pole won the tournament in 2023 and comes into this year’s event fresh off winning the Korean Open. There is also the extra incentive of closing in on the world No.1 spot wth Aryna Sabalenka currently sidelined due to what she describes as a ‘minor’ injury.
“I already know that thinking about the rankings, it’s not a way to go, no matter if you’re No. 2 or no matter if you’re No. 1. It’s just kind of numbers,” she said.
“It doesn’t change the fact that you need to kind of feel the tennis and focus on the improvement on the court, then the results are going to come after that.”
Swiatek is seeking her fourth title of 2025 in China.
