Iga Swiatek Reveals ‘Goal’ She Already Fulfilled After Arriving in New York City for US Open

Iga Swiatek will kick off her US Open campaign at the US Open on August 31 against Wang Xinyu. A former champion in New York, Swiatek holds a 24-6 win-loss record here and made the quarterfinals in the previous two seasons.

Swiatek always has big goals whenever she comes to New York City: one of the goals is, obviously, to win the title, and another one is to go to Broadway. When the Pole clinched her career’s third Grand Slam title here in 2022 by defeating Ons Jabeur, she celebrated her win by watching Hamilton on Broadway.

While competing in a tournament, players get little to no time to experience what a city has to offer. So upon landing in New York, she has already fulfilled one of these goals.

My goal always is to go to Broadway, so I already had a chance to see two Broadway shows this year.

Iga Swiatek said at the press conference

The two shows that she mentioned were: Titanique and Buena Vista Social Club. She also took to her Instagram to share her experience.

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Following a topsy-turvy start to the season, Swiatek’s hunt for her first tour-level title of the season finally ended when she beat Elena Rybakina in the Canadian Open final. It was her first title under coach Francisco Roig. She continued her winning ways in Cincinnati until eventual runner-up Jessica Pegula beat her in the semifinal.

For me, for sure it wasn’t an easy season. Probably the toughest one and the most challenging. Obviously I had to change coaches before the clay court season, which was a tricky situation. Then I started working with Francis, and just wanted to implement all the stuff that we did in practice.

Iga Swiatek added

Before the Canadian Open, the 25-year-old had made just one semifinal. And it was at the Italian Open, where eventual champion Elina Svitolina defeated her. Last year at the US Open, her run ended at the hands of eventual runner-up Amanda Anisimova.

Iga Swiatek on her work with Francisco Roig

Iga Swiatek hired Francisco Roig, who also worked with her idol Rafael Nadal, after parting ways with Wim Fissette before the clay swing. But the four-time Roland Garros champion’s struggles continued. She lost in the fourth round of the French Open and the third round of Wimbledon, where she competed as the defending champion.

Everything calmed down after Wimbledon. I managed to get some days off, reset a little bit, and we had a much longer training block. So it really helped me to implement this stuff that I was talking about.

Iga Swiatek said at the press conference

In Toronto, Swiatek lifted her career’s 12th WTA 1000 title, and it was also the first time she won this event. The former World No.1 last won a Grand Slam title at last year’s Wimbledon.

In the season’s last Major, World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka will play as the defending champion. But Sabalenka is not in great form, as she has reached just one semifinal since winning her third title of the season at the Miami Open.

Also, nothing less than a title can save her No.1 ranking position from World No.2 Elena Rybakina, World No.3 Jessica Pegula, or World No.4 Coco Gauff. Pegula and Gauff will only reach their career-best ranking if they win the title and the Kazakh ace loses before the final.

Swiatek has no chance of getting back to the top with her performance at the US Open, as she currently sits in eighth place. She hasn’t reached the No.1 spot since losing the ranking to Sabalenka in October, 2024.

Also read: Aryna Sabalenka Embraces the Noise Over Her Bold US Open Wardrobe: “They Always Complain”