Iga Swiatek is currently going through one of the most dominant runs that the women's circuit has ever seen. With 8,605 ranking points, the World No. 1 from Poland has nearly twice the points that Anett Kontaveit (4,360) possesses in the second position.
However, Swiatek's 37-match winning streak remains the biggest highlight of her season so far. In a press conference after her third-round win at the 2022 US Open, a journalist asked the Pole about the reactions of fellow players when the streak ended in July. Swiatek started by saying that although she was congratulated by quite a few players, she wasn't sure how they really felt.
"Well, I know that during all these tournaments, there were many players who congratulated me," Iga Swiatek said. "I felt like it was really appreciated that I'm so consistent, that I'm doing so much work. But honestly, I don't know how they feel about that, what they feel about that. I got positive feedback even from Alize Cornet when she won and ended that streak."
The two-time Grand Slam champion further stated that she sensed jealousy in some of the players, while admitting that she would have felt the same way.
"I'm pretty happy they are supportive, but I'm sure that some of them are jealous a little bit. We are all working to win basically, even though we should focus on the process and stuff. It's normal to want to win. I'm just happy that they are not showing it so much that they kind of envy it. I would envy as well. I'm happy that I was the one who was winning for a while," she added.
All six of her singles titles this year were a part of the streak, which started with the Qatar Open in February. The 21-year-old followed it up with titles at the Indian Wells Open, Miami Open, Stuttgart Open, Italian Open, and her second Major at the French Open.
Her streak, which lasted 135 days, came to an end at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships when she lost 6-4, 6-2 to Alize Cornet of France in the third round. The record for the most consecutive wins since 2000 was earlier held by Venus Williams — 35.
Iga Swiatek to take on Jule Niemeier in the US Open R4
In her third-round match on Saturday night, Iga Swiatek beat America's Lauren Davis 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 59 minutes to set up a fourth-round clash with Jule Niemeier. In a press conference ahead of their first-ever meeting, the Pole stated that although she didn't know much about the 23-year-old German's game, her coach would prepare her for a great battle on Monday.
"I don't know a lot, honestly," Iga Swiatek said. "I know she has a pretty nice serve. We never practiced, so I don't know, like, how it feels on a racquet, how she plays. But it's not like the first time that I'm going to be playing against a new opponent. Tactically, I trust my coach that he's going to prepare well. I know she is really talented and she is young. It's going to be a great battle."