Annual report Iga Swiatek: quantum leap and deserved throne; very good
The conclusion of the world number one Iga Swiatek on the past season cannot be negative in any way. The Pole had an almost perfect year.
by Stefan Bergmann
last edit: Dec 06, 2022, 08:24 pm
As a junior editor, you often sit for hours on some articles, struggling with formulations, scouring the Internet for further information or "enjoying" yourself with poor concentration or writer's block. In the case of an annual report from industry leader Iga Swiatek, however, the targeted text practically writes itself, because most of the Pole's great deeds in 2022 are still well remembered by the inclined tennis fan.
At the beginning of the year, women's tennis was in a state of upheaval. Long-standing guarantors of success such as Serena Williams had more or less said goodbye to the big stage in the previous seasons - and the player who was most likely to have played the leading role also ended after the first Grand Slam tournament of the year. So after Ashleigh Barty's resignation, you didn't really know what was going to happen next.
And that's when the hitherto rather inconspicuous Iga Swiatek came on the scene. Of course, the young lady from Warsaw had been in the spotlight in previous years, for example when she triumphed at the Corona French Open 2020, which was only held once in the autumn in the turbulent, exceptional year. In 2021, the successes in Adelaide (WTA Tour 500 event) and Rome (1000) were added.
Swiatek has a winning streak
The knot in the 21-year-old really burst in the season that just ended. From February 21st to June 27th, the right-hander achieved an unbelievable 37 match successes en suite and during this time raked in tournament successes from Doha to Paris. In Wimbledon then came the third round against the French Alizé Cornet. The following US hard court summer was then also the weakest phase of the West Slav in the past year. But she also knew how to turn this stage around perfectly with her success at the US Open.
The fact that at the end of the season nothing happened with the success at the WTA finals in Fort Worth is something that Swiatek can certainly cope with, as she finished 2022 as more than the clear world number one. Her first pursuer Ons Jabeur has less than half her points in the WTA ranking. A remarkable benchmark from the three-time Major winner.
In addition to her quite justified criticism of the rather unlucky end-of-year event in the US state of Texas, the highly intelligent and well-read WTA climber of the year 2020 repeatedly appeared with reflected thoughts on the women's tour. All in all, a player who could become the new figurehead of women's tennis in the coming years for multiple reasons.