Iga Swiatek chastises United Cup crowd for 'booing' Casper Ruud-led Norway, apologizes after realizing her mistake

Iga Swiatek this week reacted to crowd chants at the United Cup in Australia. She first thought the crowd was booing, before realizing they were cheering for Casper "Ruud." She then apologized to them for misunderstanding the situation. The Pole realized her mistake after remembering a similar situation that occurred last season involving Holger Rune.

Swiatek paired up with Jan Zielinski for the deciding doubles tie to take on Norway's Casper Ruud and Ulrikke Eikeri. The Polish duo clinched the tie in the topsy-turvy doubles 6-3, 0-6, 10-8 to kick things off in style. However, during the match, the World No. 2 was visibly irked by what she thought were boos, which hilariously turned out to be cheers for Ruud.

During the post-match interview, Swiatek apologized for the misunderstanding. She also referred to a similar situation involving Holger Rune. Famously, such a moment arose during the Dane's match against Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon. She said,

"OK if you were saying (Casper) Ruud, then I’m sorry."

She went on to add,

"Well, I saw on internet last year that someone else was confused, I think with (Holger) Rune? They (the crowd) were saying ‘Rune’ ...OK, then it’s my fault,"

Jelena Dokic, the interviewer, put the Polish superstar at ease, saying,

"It’s okay. We are all united. It’s all good."

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"The atmosphere helped us" - Iga Swiatek discusses her love for team events such as the United Cup

The Polish duo discussing their strategy - Source: Getty

During the post-match press conference, Iga Swiatek gave a nod to the Polish crowd for their "amazing" support. She also felt that both teams received equal support, making the tie interesting.

Swiatek said,

"Well, honestly Polish people are always amazing. I don't take it for granted, but I get used to Polish people being there on the stadium to support us.

"I think it was kind of even in terms of the support, and this is what makes our game I think the most interesting when also the crowd is kind of involved."

She expressed her love for the atmosphere in team events, saying,

"I already played some matches that were even better because of that, so for sure the atmosphere helped us. It's always exciting, you know. Honestly this is why I love playing team events and especially United Cup because we have different atmosphere, and I really enjoy that."

Iga Swiatek kicked off her season in her typical fashion, defeating Norway's Malene Helgo 6-1, 6-0, following which Casper Ruud leveled the tie with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Hubert Hurkacz. Swiatek and Zielinski clinched the tie for Poland, eliminating Norway from the 2025 United Cup in the process.

Poland will face Czech Republic in the final tie of Group B for the top spot.