Iga Swiatek Delighted with the Appointment of Francisco Roig After Showing Progress at the Italian Open

Iga Swiatek has admitted that her partnership with her latest coach, Francisco Roig, has begun to bear fruit and that their connection has been great. The Polish star is into the quarter-finals of the Rome Open after hammering past Naomi Osaka in straight sets on Monday (May 11) at the Foro Italico.

The former World No.1 has been working with Roig since the start of the clay-court season. She officially announced Roig as her coach on April 2, just over a week after parting ways with Wim Fisette. Rough is the former coach of Rafael Nadal and has worked with other players such as Emma Raducanu and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.

After Roig joined Swiatek’s coaching team, fans were expecting an instant success, but the 24-year-old crashed out of the Stuttgart Open in the quarter-finals after losing to Mirra Andreeva. Then at the Madrid Open, she retired in the third round against Ann Li following her struggle with food poisoning.

She arrived at the Italian Open with a bid to reach her first semi-final on tour this season. Swiatek has been in her best form since stepping on the court at the Foro Italico. She dropped her first set in the first round, but after that, she has dropped only four games in her last two matches against Elisabetta Cocciaretto and Naomi Osaka.

Roig has managed to keep up with his coaching duties despite tearing his Achilles tendon during a practice session with Swiatek on a court in downtown Rome to promote the Italian Open. During Swiatek’s post-match press conference, she admitted that she has begun to perfectly understand her coach and their connection is getting better:

From the very beginning, I felt a great connection with Francis, I understood him perfectly, I guess it all depends on that specific relationship that each player has with their coach. Every player wants a coach with a good eye, with a clear plan of what needs to be done and, above all, how to achieve it. Francis has a very subtle touch in terms of how he tailors each practice to what the player needs at that moment.

Roig was criticized for leaving Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard without personally informing him. The Frenchman revealed that it was his agent who told him that his coach had left his team after taking Swiatek’s coaching offer. Perricard has struggled this season and has dropped out of the top 50 on tour.

Iga Swiatek expects a tough quarter-final match-up against Jessica Pegula at the Italian Open

Iga Swiatek is chasing her first clay court title since winning the 2024 French Open and has yet to contest a tour final this year on any surface. Often called the clay queen, Swiatek has struggled on the surface of late, but she’s getting back to her best following her back-to-back top match performance at the Italian Open.

Swiatek will face Jessica Pegula in the quarter-finals of the Italian Open, a match that will determine who reaches the semi-finals. The Polish star has met the American player 11 times on tour, so she understands her style of play well enough. During the aforementioned press conference, Swiatek noted that it will be a tough clash between her and Pegula:

Jess is always a tough opponent. She is already super experienced and calm, playing in a solid way. I will need to be ready, watch her games on the clay court, ’cause I think it’s been a while since we played on clay.

Swiatek leads Pegula 6-5 in their head-to-head record but has lost their two most recent meetings. Pegula has made solid strides in her game in the past few months and has been one of the most consistent players on tour. But Swiatek knows how to play better on clay than any player in the women’s circuit. The winner of the clash is projected to face Elena Rybakina in the semi-finals.

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