Iga Swiatek Predicted to Follow in Novak Djokovic’s Footsteps After Poor String of Results on Clay

Iga Swiatek's search for her first title since last year's French Open continues after her defeat to Danielle Collins at the Italian Open.

Iga Swiatek Predicted to Follow in Novak Djokovic’s Footsteps After Poor String of Results on Clay

Novak Djokovic, Iga Swiatek (Image via X/Olly_Tennis, Jimmie48 Photography)

Iga Swiatek‘s run in clay-court tournaments before the French Open came to an end on Saturday (May 10). The third-round match at Foro Italico was her ninth tour-level match against Danielle Collins, who registered her second victory over the Pole.

Swiatek last lifted a title at the French Open last year by breezing past Jasmine Paolini. Prior to last year’s Roland Garros, Swiatek lifted her first Madrid Open title and her third trophy of the Italian Open by beating World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka in both finals.

This year, however, Swiatek defeated Jelena Ostapenko and Coco Gauff at the Stuttgart Open and the Madrid Open, respectively. She will be entering the French Open, scheduled to start on May 25, without a title under her belt.

After the Italian Open, two WTA clay-court events will be held before the French Open: the WTA Internationaux de Strasbourg and the Morocco Open. Former World No.7 Marion Bartoli wonders if Swiatek will ask for a wild card in a tournament before the French Open just like Novak Djokovic, who was handed the wild card by the Geneva Open.

It’s going to be a tricky situation. Will she ask for a wildcard in one of the events leading up to Roland Garros? That is a question mark. Novak Djokovic for example, has requested a wildcard in Geneva. I think for Iga, she has lack of match play.

Marion Bartoli told Sky Sports

Djokovic too hasn’t yet lifted a title since winning the gold medal at the Paris Olympics last year. Since that victory, the 24-time Grand Slam champion stuck on 99 ATP titles, reaching two finals: at the Shanghai Masters and the Miami Open, losing both, to World No.1 Jannik Sinner and Jakub Mensik, respectively.

On the clay swing this year, the Serb got knocked out of his opening rounds in Monte Carlo and Madrid, following which, he withdrew from the Italian Open, missing the tournament for the first time since 2007. He played in Geneva last year but Tomas Machac knocked him out in the semifinals.

Iga Swiatek reveals reason behind her defeat to Danielle Collins

Iga Swiatek hit just 15 winners and made 22 unforced errors against Danielle Collins’ 32 winners and 15 unforced errors. In Rome, the best clay-court WTA player of this generation lost a first-round match five years ago. Since then, Swiatek never really lost a match.

Iga Swiatek (4)
Iga Swiatek (Image via X/The Tennis Letter)

She had a 21-1 win-loss record in the Spanish capital before this year, with the lone defeat she registered being a walkover she gave to eventual winner Elena Rybakina in the quarterfinals in 2023. So why such a subpar performance this time? In Rome in fact, Swiatek failed to move into the quarterfinals in singles event for the first time this year.

I just don’t think I’ve been present to fight and compete. I focused on the mistakes, and it’s my fault because I’m not doing things right. I feel like I only concentrate on what I’m not doing well. Clearly, I am doing things wrong, I need to reflect and change.

Iga Swiatek said at the press conference

Swiatek will no longer be a top 2 player for the first time in over three years. She will start the next week as a World No.4 player. The two Americans, Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula (lost in the third round) will fight it out for the second and third positions. Their defeats in the event won’t help Swiatek move into the top 3, and Swiatek could also lose the No.4 spot if two-time Grand Slam singles finalist Jasmine Paolini wins the Italian Open.

Also read: Coco Gauff Bitterly Complains About the Italian Open’s Slow Conditions After Opening Round Victory