“She’s having an out-of-body experience,” Former World No.1 finds Iga Swiatek’s comment after Madrid exit weird
Coco Gauff snapped Iga Swiatek's ten-match consecutive victories in the semi-finals of the Madrid Open.
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Iga Swiatek (Image via X/Out of Context Iga Swiatek)
The Madrid Open semi-final between Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek was one of the biggest surprising results of the season so far. It was a match Swiatek was expected to win or a closely-fought battle but it lasted just 64 minutes. Former World No.1 Jim Courier reacted to the World No. 2’s statement after the loss.
Swiatek has always played her best tennis on clay despite having some rough patches on hard and grass courts. The 23-year-old had arrived at Madrid with expectations after suffering a harrowing defeat against Jelena Ostapenko in Stuttgart. The Polish star wasn’t at her best in the Spanish capital and had to fight hard to reach the semi-finals.
Against Gauff, she was seen in tears during a changeover as she sprayed errors all over the court during her loss. The former World No.1 hit an astonishing 21 unforced errors while winning just 31 percent of her first serve points, which was uncharacteristic of her on clay while failing to create any break points in Gauff’s serve.
During her post-match press conference, Swiatek said she struggled with her movement. That got Jim Courier’s attention as he found the statement pretty surprising, given how strong her movement has always been on clay.
Iga, after the match, was commenting on how she feels very uncomfortable with her footwork right now. That is really weird because that is in your control. That does not have anything to do with your opponents. It is almost like she is having an out-of-body experience right now. It is very uncharacteristic to hear her say that for sure.
Jim Courier said via Tennis Channel
However, Gauff registered 18 winners and just four unforced errors against Swiatek. She has now beaten the Polish star three consecutive times and for the first time on a clay court.
Former British player gives her assessment on Iga Swiatek’s loss to Coco Gauff in Madrid
Iga Swiatek’s uncharacteristic performance against Coco Gauff will remain long in the memory of fans. The Polish star had won ten consecutive Madrid Open matches before Gauff snapped the record in the semi-finals. Former British star Annabel Croft revealed during a conversation gave a deep assessment of Swiatek’s defeat to Gauff.
She was very dominant at this stage last year, and we were looking at — thinking how can players stay on court with her on a clay court because she was just a level above everybody else, but she has unravelled. And there’s been multiple occasions recently where she’s lost to players you wouldn’t expect her to. Okay, this Coco Gauff one is a different calibre of player ’cause she’s a US Open champion and she’s also been to the finals of the French Open on the clay courts.
Annabel Croft said via Sky Sports
Swiatek will now hope to bounce back at the Italian Open, which commences on May 7. The 23-year-old is the defending champion and has recorded only one loss in four years at the competition.
Iga Swiatek reportedly considering skipping the grass-court season
Iga Swiatek is reported to be in discussion with her team about taking an extended break from tennis after the Roland Garros by skipping the grass-court season, in favor of an extended US Open build-up. Polish outlet Onet reported the information, claiming that the action will be dictated by Swiatek’s result in her next two tournaments.
She has yet to reach the semi-finals in her last four participation at the Wimbledon Championship. Her best result at the competition was making it to the quarter-finals in 2023, and she did poorly there compared to other major events. Last year, she lost to Yulia Putintseva in the third round of the grass-court Grand Slam event.
This comes after Swiatek’s 1-6, 1-6 loss against Coco Gauff in the semi-finals of the Madrid Open. She has failed to make a final at any tournament since the 2024 edition of the Roland Garros.
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