Every Swiatek She was the first tennis player to sit in the press room of the US Open 2022 to start one of the most special days, that of the Media Day. The current world number 1 had her meeting with the journalists to comment on her experiences with the tournament, although most of the questions were related to Serena Williams and her withdrawal. Of course, an interesting matter such as coaching was left for the end, where the Pole did not hesitate to reveal her opinion.
back to new york
“I am very excited to play this tournament, happy that I had time to practice a little more, I feel like I am ready. It’s great to come back here and learn more and more every year, I feel that progress, so I hope to show it in my matches.”
relationship with the city
“New York is a great city for a few weeks, I would not choose it to live because I am a person who needs a quiet place with the right environment to rest. New York, in that sense, is always alive. For sure a place like this would not be for me, although the tournament is great. Any tournament we play is great, with an atmosphere unlike any other.”
exhibition for peace
“It was an amazing experience, once in a lifetime. We already played once at Roland Garos two years ago, so Rafa is great, as a child she would never have imagined me playing alongside her and forming a team with her. The whole event was wonderful, I’m happy that we were able to raise such a lot of money and seeing all the people who were involved, it was an example. I am happy to have participated and continue to help by the cauda. It’s great for us that as athletes we can have that impact by setting an example and bringing other people on board.”
Serena Williams, a legend
“For me it is still surreal when I see her, I feel like I am a girl by her side, I watched her all my life, she was everywhere because she always won, she always played the semifinals and finals. I never felt that I could be a tennis player because I saw her much stronger, our way of playing was not similar, we have different conditions. Mentally, she is a specialist in showing you where you stand, she knows how to intimidate, how to be number one. Now I’m trying to do that, even if she doesn’t get it (laughs). Without a doubt, Serena is a great example, she is an incredible person, not many athletes have achieved what she has done. She cleared the way for many others and she taught us that anything can be achieved, the sky is the limit”.
Serena, the mirror to stay at No. 1
“Now I understand everything a little better being in that situation, I know how difficult it is sometimes to find balance and stay focused on the right things. I think she always did very well, she probably also had a great team around her to guide her. Each one has her own path, we can’t copy what Serena did, because if you try to imitate her it won’t work. One of my goals is to be consistent throughout my career, to stay in the top 10 for a long time. She was number 1 for a long time, she is a very crazy thing, so now I am trying to understand how she did it”.
Opinion on the coaching
“I would like to go back to the system that we had in 2019, when I entered the professional circuit, there we could call our coach to come down to the court at the end of a set, I liked that. Now everything is more complicated, the judges have to interpret what the coaches say and how many times they do it. The stadiums are very noisy, so many times we don’t even notice. It was more helpful when we called them on changes, because we could discuss things for a minute. As for television broadcasts, I think it is also more attractive, more interesting. On the other hand, I understand tennis players who see tennis as an individual sport where we have to solve problems on our own.
