JAKARTA - Polish tennis star and former world number one, Iga Swiatek, confirmed that she was optimistic about welcoming the 2026 Australian Open Grand Slam despite being in her worst form at the beginning of this year.
The 24-year-old and six-time Grand Slam champion suffered two consecutive defeats in the 2026 United Cup, successively against Coco Gauff (from the United States) in the semifinals and Belinda Bencic (from Switzerland) in the final.
Iga admitted that her body felt very tired, but was still confident that she could recover in time before the Australian Open, the only Grand Slam tournament she had not won in her career.
"Everything is fine. My body just feels very tired. The first tournament at the beginning of the year does give a different physical burden than the middle of the season," said Swiatek as reported by France 24.
In the final against Bencic, Swiatek surrendered with a score of 3-6, 6-0, and 6-3. Before that, he even lost more heavily against Coco Gauff who ended in two straight sets 6-4 and 6-2.
Moments of frustration were visible when Swiatek lost seven consecutive games to Bencic, including a crushing defeat in the second set without a response.
Swiatek even slammed the racket and shed tears at the end of the match. It was a scene that was rarely seen from a player of his class.
Swiatek admitted that the high intensity in a doubles event like the United Cup was quite draining. In the second set against Bencic, he felt a loss of movement sharpness and foot precision that usually became his weapon on the field.
"We will work hard to improve the elements that did not work this week. Tennis is like this, you have to follow the flow and keep moving," said Swiatek.
Statistics recorded Swiatek making 36 own mistakes (unforced errors), compared to Bencic who only made 10 mistakes.
Despite failing to contribute, Poland finally emerged as the United Cup champion thanks to the victory of the mixed doubles pair of Katarzyna Kawa and Jan Zielinski.
Meanwhile, the 2026 Australian Open at Melbourne Park is scheduled to take place from January 12 to February 1, 2026. Swiatek's best trip there was two times to the semifinals, in 2022 and 2025 editions.
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