Iga Swaitek Says She’s Not Changing Much For 2023

Iga Swiatek is ready to bounce back from a tough, teary loss to Jessica Pegula at the United Cup. Any shoulder concerns the world No. 1 shrugged off, “there’s nothing bad going on”.

And now that she’s on top, she wants to stay there by playing the same game that got her there.

“The greatest players are consistent throughout their whole careers,” Swiatek said during her pre-Australian Open presser. “I don’t think Novak changed a lot in his game since a few years ago.

“I think it matters to kind of be able to just be consistent with the best game you have. Sometimes actually I feel like I tend to give even too much in terms of maybe the speed. For me, it’s all about staying kind of solid and actually, like, not changing a lot. It worked, so why would I change a lot?”

Swiatek did reveal that she’s in awe of Ash Barty’s game.

“She gave me a lot in terms of my motivation and my kind of willingness to practice even more, to have more variety on court,” Swiatek reflected on the Australian. “When I played against her, I felt like she just has all these different game styles and slice. Even her book she says she has, like, five types of slice. I don’t know how that’s possible. I still haven’t figured out only one type.”

Swiatek enters this Australian Open as the prohibitive favorite. Just 21, she’s ready for the challenge. And she has a tough one in her Monday opener against Jule Niemeier who took a set off the Pole in New York and made the Wimbledon quarterfinals.

“We played on US Open, and you saw how intense that match was, how tough. It’s not going to be easy,” Swiatek said. “But on other hand any match in Grand Slam is always more intense and more stressful than other tournaments. I’ll be ready for it.”