Inactive player Jerzy Janowicz opined on Iga Swiatek’s grass-court form at Wimbledon and what led her to a monumental success on the surface. Swiatek will be in action at the National Bank Open, slated to compete against Guo Hanyu in the opening round.
Iga Swiatek hasn’t had any success on the surface previously, with her best result at a grass-court major being a quarterfinal appearance in 2023. At Wimbledon this year, she earned her first title in London, defeating American player Amanda Anisimova in straight sets. She also made history by winning every single game en route to her title – the first time a women’s final ended with a double bagel.
Swiatek’s success garnered praises from tennis fans and enthusiasts, but Polish inactive player Jerzy Janowicz shared his views about how the 24-year-old broke through on her least comfortable surface.
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"I wouldn't say Iga plays well on grass, because she didn't really have a single major test at Wimbledon. She played against girls who were much weaker at tennis, she didn't really play against any girls who could give her trouble on grass. These were girls who were really learning grass or who played poorly on grass. The ladder simply opened up for Iga, and Iga took advantage of it brilliantly."
Janowicz further added that Iga Swiatek didn't face the best players in any round at Wimbledon to put her skills to the test.
"She didn't have a single test at Wimbledon this year, so it's hard to give a blanket assessment. No one could have given her such pure tennis conditions—not just the grass, but pure tennis conditions—to test Iga. One thing we know for sure is that Iga passed the open bracket test perfectly."
The six-time Grand Slam winner won her maximum major title at the French Open in 2020, 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Iga Swiatek expressed her feelings about not being able to celebrate her win due to a tight tour schedule
Iga Swiatek, one of the most formidable players on the tour, missed her US Open title defense in 2023 and 2024 but will return as a heavy favorite in the 2025 edition of Flushing Meadows. In conversation with Andy Roddick in the Served podcast, Swiatek talked about the demanding schedule of tennis and didn't allow her any celebration time post-Wimbledon.
"So, I kind of only think about these stats and these achievements when I get asked about it, but day by day, not really. It's I try to remind myself if I feel like I need to yeah celebrate a bit more and um and be proud of what I'm doing. But you don't have much time to do that cuz as I said like next week you have another challenge in tennis. It's not like you have only like world championships, Olympics and if you win that you can kind of be happy for month or two. You just have to get back into it straight away." (beginning 18:58)
Swiatek will pair with Casper Ruud in the US Open mixed doubles this year. She only has a quarterfinal appearance in mixed doubles at the Australian Open in 2020.
