"She'll bounce back," Paolini discusses Swiatek's early exit in Rome
Jasmine Paolini has reached the final of the WTA 1000 in Rome. After a flawless run so far, the Italian will compete in the tournament's final this Saturday on home soil against Coco Gauff.
The 29-year-old took advantage of the early exits of Iga Swiatek (defeated in the third round by Danielle Collins) and Aryna Sabalenka (ousted in the quarterfinals by Zheng Qinwen) to carve her path to the final. She was asked which loss between the Pole and the Belarusian surprised her the most in this tournament.
"Iga (Swiatek)'s elimination is the most surprising to me. She’s already won this tournament before (three times in 2021, 2022, and 2024) and has four Roland Garros titles. She’s an exceptional clay-court player, and I say that from experience because I faced her last year in Paris.
On one hand, it was a surprise, but on the other, that’s just how tennis works—week after week, year after year.
It’s not easy to maintain such a high level all the time. But I believe she’ll come back to Rome and win this tournament again.
Of course, seeing her lose so early in a tournament isn’t common, but she’ll recover—I have no doubt about that," Paolini assured Tennis Up To Date. She will play this Saturday for her second WTA 1000 title.
