Iga Swiatek's French Open of the mind starts with good tennis habits

New York Times

6 days ago

ROLAND GARROS, PARIS — The French Open started just three days ago, but it has already seen a few different versions of Iga Świątek, who has essentially owned this tournament the past three years.
On Friday, there was the version of Świątek whose tennis career has, of late, morphed into a somewhat public psychology experiment. Each match and each appearance in front of a microphone becomes a representation of the inner workings of her brain, rather than a discussion about the inner workings of her tennis, which is peerless at its best.
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On Sunday, there was the Świątek who has long been a Rafael Nadal follower. Clad in one of the burnt-orange 'Merci Rafa' T-shirts, Świątek teared up amid the 15,000 fans who gathered to celebrate the 14-time Roland Garros champion on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
On Monday, the most familiar Roland Garros version of Świątek appeared: the four-time champion who has won three titles in a row. The player who has not lost in this tournament since 2021, who mostly rolls through opponents with a relentless efficiency.
Even better for Świątek's purposes, she was a combination of the old and new versions of herself against Rebecca Šramková of Slovakia on the way to a 6-3, 6-3 win. She resisted any urge to revert to bad habits in stressful moments. Instead, she made the sort of decisions that she and her coach, Wim Fissette, have been trying to ingrain since they started working together last year.
Perhaps that had something to do with playing on her favorite court, where her dominance had plenty in common with the guy she was getting misty about 17 hours before she won. It's not a magical elixir, but this is the first time in a while that Świątek hasn't shown up to Roland Garros on the back of a dominant clay court season. It's something.
'For sure, I feel a lot of good energy, and I feel like I'm ready to fight, you know, I am willing to fight,' Świątek said in a news conference after it was over.
'And it's great to be pumped up before the match because of that, so I'm using it.'
The win took her French Open record to 36-2. Nadal went 112-4. And the conversation was about what was going on inside her head rather than in her hands.
The two are very much related, and there was plenty of evidence of that against Šramková — but not the evidence of the past year. Of late, when Świątek falls behind to an opponent like Šramková, who can slash winners from all parts of the court and roll downhill with little warning, she has fought fire with fire. Her formula for a while has been that when swinging hard isn't working, swing harder, which has led to more frustration than wins.
Early in the second set of their match, Šramková caught fire. She cracked forehands down the line and slid about the court, keeping Świątek on her heels and going 3-1 up with a break of serve. Świątek was unmoved. She held serve for *3-2 Šramková and then got to 0-30.
Then she then jumped on the next two serves, but she didn't try to bang her way out of trouble, as she has for months now, she curled an inside-in backhand into an open area well inside the sideline. Then she did the same thing with an inside-in forehand. She'd hit those winners with both her hands but also with her head, something that had been missing in recent, one-sided losses to Coco Gauff and Danielle Collins in two of her past three matches.
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She'd said in Rome that her shortcomings were all about her 'mindset,' that she wasn't showing up ready to fight like she says she has done in Paris.
Few players in the modern game have put more emphasis on their psyche. Arguably the most important member of her team is her sports psychologist, Daria Abramowicz, who is a constant travel companion, in her box for nearly every match and usually on the court during practices.
Świątek said she has leaned as hard as ever on Abramowicz in a trying past year, in which she lost the No. 1 ranking and went through an anti-doping investigation and suspension.
Those experiences, she said, have caused her to struggle with her focus on the court, and occasionally lose her temper, as she did when she smacked a ball out of the court during a loss at Indian Wells to Mirra Andreeva.
In an email earlier this month, Świątek wrote that her state of mind is a priority, now and moving forward.
'Mental health awareness has always been, and will continue to be, a significant topic for me,' she wrote.
'I have consistently been open about the vital role that both mental preparation and maintaining mental health play in top-level sports. It's crucial that we recognize the distinction between a momentary lapse in focus or facing a couple of minor challenges, and genuinely struggling mentally, as these phrases convey very different meanings.
'To be clear, I am content with my life and my mental well-being. However, that doesn't negate the fact that I could sometimes be more efficient with my focus and energy management, which is an area I'm actively working on, as a part of my performance. I truly appreciate the support and guidance my team provides, both on and off the court, as they share their knowledge and expertise with me. It's all about finding the right balance that works for me, and I will make my decisions based on that.'
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On Monday, she said she might also lean on the advice of her tennis hero for the rest of the tournament, which continues against Britain's Emma Raducanu.
Świątek spoke of looking to Nadal at times when she felt lost. She sees someone who never lost sight of his goals and his values, even in adversity. Even Nadal would sometimes come to Roland Garros in a bad run of form. More often than not, he found his way.
Świątek ran into him in a Paris hotel in 2021, after he had lost to Novak Djokovic in the semifinals. 'I was devastated that he lost,' she said.
Nadal was at breakfast. She approached and asked him how he felt.
'He was chill, like, 'Oh, it's just a tennis match. I'll get many more chances.'
'I was like, 'What? Why am I crying if he's not crying?'' she said.