"I thought for a second I'm supposed to sing" - Iga Swiatek breathes a sign of relief after hilarious moment in Italian Open trophy presentation

Iga Swiatek is not as confident about her singing chops as she is when it comes to her tennis skills. The Pole admittedly thought she would have to belt out a song after her championship-match defeat of Aryna Sabalenka at the Italian Open on Saturday (May 18).

Swiatek has won 38 of her 42 matches on the WTA Tour this year, six of which came at the Foro Italico this fortnight. In fact, the World No. 1 dropped more than four games in a set on only one occasion, blitzing past her opponents to clinch her fourth WTA title of the season.

Iga Swiatek has now won three of the six WTA 1000 titles in 2024 — the BNP Paribas Open, the Madrid Open and the Italian Open. The Pole is perhaps used to that winning feeling this season, as evidenced by her easy-going energy during the trophy ceremony in Rome.

A song was playing just before Swiatek's winner's speech, with the trophy presenter asking the 22-year-old to give her thoughts on her Italian Open campaign towards its end. The three-time Rome titlist hilariously replied that she thought he was asking her to sing to the tune of the above song.

"I thought for a second that I’m supposed to sing... it's good that the song ended," Iga Swiatek remarked tongue-in-cheek.

For what its worth, Swiatek doesn't have a disclination to singing. During last year's WTA Finals pre-tournament party, the Pole uploaded a video of herself singing along to an opera song on her Instagram reels.

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Iga Swiatek rises to joint-sixth on the WTA 1000 title leaders list after Italian Open triumph

Iga Swiatek retrieves a ball during the 2024 Italian Open final

Iga Swiatek has been a force to be reckoned with at the WTA 1000 tournaments ever since her entry into the top echelons of women's tennis in 2020. The Pole has recorded 10 triumphs at the level, with only five players having won more titles.

With her latest title victory in Rome, Swiatek tied seven-time Major winner Justine Henin and former World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka's tally of 10 WTA 1000 titles. The players that are above her in the 1000-level titles leaderboard are: Serena Williams (23), Martina Hingis (17), Steffi Graf (15), Maria Sharapova (14) and Lindsay Davenport (11).

The four-time Major winner, meanwhile, has already won six different WTA 1000 titles — the Qatar Open (2022, 2024), the BNP Paribas Open (2022, 2024), the Miami Open (2022), the Madrid Open (2024), the Italian Open (2021-22, 2024) and the China Open (2023).