Swiatek Discusses Pressure and Expectations: "After Such Great Seasons, I'm in the Spotlight"
Without a title for nearly a year (since Roland-Garros 2024), Iga Swiatek will kick off her clay-court season this week at the WTA 500 in Stuttgart.
A two-time champion of the German tournament (2022 and 2023), the world No. 2 reflected on the expectations surrounding her this season, especially on clay:
"Clay remains a challenge because not everything falls perfectly into place. We play most of the year on hard courts, so adjusting to clay takes time. This year, I’ve had more time to make the transition. [...]
We’ve kept the same preparation that worked in previous seasons. The goal is to focus on myself. It hasn’t been easy these past few months. After such great seasons, I’m in the spotlight, judged on everything, and the expectations are high.
With Wim (Fissette, her coach), we have a lot of ideas to improve my technique. In practice, it’s been working well, so I’ll apply it in matches.
I try to keep myself busy with these kinds of things. I’m sure that if I work hard, the results will come. People will say what they want, but you have to ignore it."
Stuttgart 
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