Iga Swiatek wins matches now before she even walks out, says Jimmy Connors

Former ATP World No. 1 Jimmy Connors has praised Iga Swiatek for her dominance on the WTA tour.

Swiatek has been the top-ranked women's player since Ashleigh Barty announced her retirement from the sport last year. She went on a 37-match win streak last year, won two Majors (French Open and US Open), and consolidated her position as the best player on the tour.

The Pole has a 26-6 win-loss record in 2023. She has reached four finals this season, winning two (Qatar Open and Stuttgart Open) and losing two (Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and Madrid Open).

Eight-time Grand Slam champion Connors has praised Swiatek for the way she has established herself on the court. He stated that players are being forced to be at their best if they want to stand a chance of beating the 21-year-old.

“The players now know that to go out and to play her and to beat her, they got to hit the red line almost every shot and play over and above, because she's winning matches now before she even walks out there,” he said while speaking on an episode of the Advantage Connors podcast.

“She's got that swagger, she’s got that reputation now. That's what you work for. So those who go out and beat her, they produce. She makes everybody she plays raised their level of game,” he added.

Connors also said that Swiatek has a 'bullseye on her back' and other players are gunning to defeat her almost more than winning tournaments.

“That's the greatest compliment I think you can get in the game, is that to go out there and know that everybody's gunning for you. You got the bullseye on your back and everybody almost rather beat her than win the tournament. And that's a pretty great reputation. By the way, her record [in] the last couple [of] years deserves that,” he opined.

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Iga Swiatek: “People are saying it's tough to get to top, but staying at the top is even tougher”

Iga Swiatek at the 2023 Madrid Open.

Iga Swiatek was last seen in action at the 2023 Madrid Open, where she lost 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to Aryna Sabalenka in the final. That match was the first time the top two ranked WTA players faced off in a WTA 1000 final since Serena Williams and Li Na locked horns in Miami in 2014.

Speaking at a press conference after her defeat to Sabalenka, Switatek stated that while it is tough for players to establish themselves on the tour, it's tougher still to ensure they stay at the top.

"It's tough. People are saying it's tough to get to top, but staying at the top is even tougher. I don't know. I haven't lived enough to know if that's like true or not, but getting to the top, I felt like it would be harder anyway, and staying at the top is hard, but I think I'm doing a good job anyway," she said.

Iga Swiatek will be in action at the Italian Open in Rome next, after which she'll enter the French Open as the defending champion.