"Were unsure if she would be able to play" – Iga Swiatek's coach Tomasz Wiktorowski on French Open 2023 triumph lead-up

Iga Swiatek’s coach Tomasz Wiktorowski has acknowledged the obstacles the team overcame in the lead-up to the 2023 French Open triumph.

Swiatek lifted her fourth Grand Slam title, and her third at Roland Garros (after 2020, 2022), by edging out Karolina Muchova in three sets, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4, in the ultimate clash on Saturday, June 10.

The title in Paris is also the 22-year-old’s third Major win with her coach Wiktorowski after last year's French Open and US Open. The Polish coach, who previously mentored former World No. 2 Agnieszka Radwanska, joined Swiatek’s team in 2021.

He spoke about the World No. 1’s recently-concluded final against Muchova, saying that Swiatek "felt more pressure” of her own expectations while defending her title this year.

“Iga felt more pressure than last year,” Wiktorowski said during an interview with Eurosport. “It was a huge match, the final of a Grand Slam. Being here back-to-back means something, but also, you demand more from yourself.”

The victory hasn’t come easy for the Pole. Swiatek failed in all five WTA 1000 attempts this year so far. In 2022, she collected four of those in the first half of the season. The World No. 1 was unable to defend her titles in Miami and Rome due to injury-related setbacks.

42-year-old Wiktorowski acknowledged the hardships Swiatek went through this year. He revealed that the team was unsure if the 22-year-old will be able to contest the French Open after her thigh injury in Rome.

“She has passed through all the tough moments this year. She was injured badly in Indian Wells and then skipped Miami. Then after Rome, we were unsure if she would be able to play at the French Open until the very last moment," he recalled.

Wiktorowski also remarked that the World No. 1’s final against Muchova was her most difficult match since he joined the team.

“This is why this was the most difficult match for me since I became her coach,” he said.

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Iga Swiatek successfully guards her World No. 1 spot at French Open 2023

Iga Swiatek at the 2023 French Open

Iga Swiatek, who had 2000 ranking points on the line at the 2023 French Open, entered the tournament with a live ranking of World No. 2, behind Aryna Sabalenka.

The Pole faced a real threat of losing her top spot after the claycourt Major, thanks to Sabalenka’s relentless effort in reaching the semifinals, where she was stopped by Karolina Muchova. Swiatek’s subsequent semifinal victory over Beatriz Haddad Maia ensured that she will stay put in her ranking position come Monday, June 12.

With her recent Major victory, Iga Swiatek became only the third woman in the Open Era to win all four of her first Grand Slam finals, alongside Monica Seles and Naomi Osaka; and the fourth player overall – with Roger Federer included.

Swiatek also became the first woman to defend a Grand Slam title since Serena Williams at Wimbledon in 2016, and the first at the French Open since Justine Henin in 2007. Additionally, the 22-year-old is the youngest female player to defend her title in Paris since Monica Seles in 1991.