Iga Swiatek admits pressure of defending her status as world No. 1 was ‘overwhelming’

Swiatek won the China Open and the WTA Finals in Cancun to retake the No. 1 ranking from the Belarusian.

The Pole credited a change in mentality after a disappointing exit in the fourth round of the US Open for her late-season revival.

“It was certainly a demanding season that taught me a lot and which makes me even more proud. This year-end result exceeded all my expectations,” Swiatek told Eurosport Poland.

“The fact that I came back to No. 1 and that it happened in Cancun with all the pressure and strange circumstances.”

“She deserved it,” said Swiatek. “She had a great season. She won a Grand Slam, was in the final of another Grand Slam and in two semi-finals, so it was an amazing season.

“I just preferred to focus on other things, because the pressure related to the No. 1 spot was a bit overwhelming in the middle of the season.

“For this reason, I didn’t play very freely until the US Open, and then I knew that I just had to change this attitude and approach the next tournaments differently, just be a different player who didn’t focus on all that things. Although I always try to do it, but it doesn’t always work out.”

Next year looks set to be even more mentally and physically draining for the world’s top female players.

A revised WTA calendar will see the number of 1000-level tournaments rise to 10, with Madrid and Beijing extending to two weeks in length with larger draws.

The Paris Olympics will also be slotted in between Wimbledon and the US Open.

Swiatek called on the sport’s authorities to do more to practice what they preach when it comes to mental and physical well-being of their players.

“The calendar is changing towards even more duties, even greater expenditure of energy that we will have to devote while participating in tournaments, because the tournaments are also extended,” she added.

“It is simply not conducive to what the WTA promotes in other aspects, i.e. mental health, life balance in any way, physical health.

“I would make decisions that would be more conducive to what they promote and support.”