Iga Swiatek’s US Open campaign came to an upsetting end on Wednesday, September 3, in the quarterfinal clash with Amanda Anisimova at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. After the loss, the Pole held a press conference, discussing various aspects of the match, including the match delay. She also had a heated exchange with a reporter.
Swaitek opened her US Open campaign on August 26, where she competed against Emiliana Arango and dominated the round with a 6-1, 6-2 win. Following this, she squared off against multiple players and qualified for the quarterfinals, where she locked horns with Anisimova. The Pole was the clear favorite of this match, as she was expected to defeat the American just like she did in their Wimbledon clash; however, the latter earned a straight two-set win (6-4, 6-3), ending Swiatek’s journey and progressing to the semi-finals.
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Following this loss, Swaitek attended a press conference, where she expressed her disappointment that her quarterfinal match had been delayed because of the ongoing match between Felix Auger-Aliassime and Alex de Minaur.
"They don't make sense. Like you have to be ready to play at one anyway because you have not before one. But then you wait because obviously how many times men's match is going to finish in like one and a half hour or something? Right. So just that's tennis. You have to adjust to that. No point to overthink it," said Iga Swiatek (2:49 onwards).
Amid this press conference, the 24-year-old had a tense exchange with a reporter who repeatedly asked about her mental health despite her saying that it was fine. Initially, the reporter questioned her about how tired she was after the end of her US Open campaign. Replying to this, the former World No. 1 answered that she wasn't exhausted; however, the reporter went on to ask questions about her mental health.
"Do you feel like a mental break? I'm not talking about the loss as such," the reporter asked (4:32 onwards).
"Why would you say that?" Swiatek responded.
This tense exchange continued with Iga Swiatek chastising the reporter for repeatedly asking her the same question.
"You look like you need mental break," the Pole said.
"I do, yeah," the journalist responded.
"Well, then what are you doing here?" she said.
Iga Swiatek opened up about her clash with Amanda Anisimova at the US Open quarterfinal
Ahead of the US Open, Iga Swiatek and Amanda Anisimova competed against each other in the Wimbledon finals. Here, the former delivered an impressive performance and got the better of the American with a 6-0, 6-0 win. After this showdown, the two players faced each other at the US Open, where Anisimova took her revenge by besting the Pole and advancing to the semifinals.
Talking about this match at the press conference, Swiatek said that she knew it was going to be a tough match, admitting that it wasn't a surprise for her.
"Well, it didn't really matter for me. Like I think everybody knows how Amanda can play. Yeah, she didn't play well on Wimbledon, but it's not like she always going to do the same mistakes or feel the same. So no, I know that she's a good player. She can play great tennis. So for me, I was like ready for a tough match and yeah, she won. So I guess, yeah, it didn't matter," said Iga Swiatek (1:51 onwards).
She added (3:15 onwards):
"It was totally different. Yeah, but as I said, it's not a surprise. I practice with her. I know how she can play. And, yeah, it was totally different. Like, she moved better, she played better. Yeah, everything was different."
After winning the Wimbledon title, Iga Swiatek also claimed the Cincinnati Masters' title after besting Jasmine Paolini.
