Iga Swiatek says she’s “trying to find more joy” from every win after helping Poland reach the United Cup final

Iga Swiatek beat Elena Rybakina 7-6(5), 6-4 at the Ken Rosewall Arena to ensure Poland reach the final of the United Cup.

Iga Swiatek says she’s “trying to find more joy” from every win after helping Poland reach the United Cup final

Iga Swiatek (image via Instagram)

Poland marched into a second consecutive final at the United Cup thanks to Iga Swiatek’s excellent display in Perth. The former World No.1 ended the 2024 season in a disappointing run of form following a doping case. But she has put all that behind her this year and is now seeking for joy on the court once again.

Swiatek’s doping scandal was a big blow to her reputation. The Polish star was handed a one-month suspension after testing positive for trimetazidine in August 2024. However, she did well to handle the case properly and also put in a good performance on the court. She helped Poland scale through the group phase of the United Cup swiftly.

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She helped the team prevail over Great Britain in the quarterfinals before their meeting on Saturday (January 4) against Kazakhstan. The World No.2 battled hard against Elena Rybakina, eventually winning 7-6(5), 6-4 at the Ken Rosewall Arena. The victory ensured that last year’s runners-up secured a convincing 2-0 victory over Kazakhstan.

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After the match, Swiatek was excited about the victory but also about the joy the win brings. The 23-year-old added that negative emotions push her to work harder to get the positives from the court.

Now it’s not either, but I remember in 2022, like, every quarterfinal was an amazing achievement, and last year, like, quarterfinal was, like, whoa, okay, I’ve got to do more. So I’m trying to find more just joy and these positive emotions. Sometimes negativity is going to come as well, but I feel like I can push with, like, when I’m having negative emotions, it’s going to push me to work even harder. But for sure it’s more emotional because we’re playing for the team, not only for ourselves, so I think this also adds up to that.

Iga Swiatek said via United Cup Press

Swiatek will be hoping to win the United Cup with Poland ahead of the Australian Open. The French Open champion has maintained a perfect record at the tournament despite Poland finishing runners-up last year.

Iga Swiatek dismisses any major injury scare after playing with a strapping on her right thigh

Iga Swiatek has been playing with a strapping on her right thigh since the quarterfinals of the United Cup. The Polish star was first seen with the strapping during her comeback victory against Great Britain’s Katie Boulter. She wore it against Elena Rybakina on Saturday (January 4) but performed excellently to win in straight sets.

Iga Swiatek United Cup 2025
Iga Swiatek (image via Youtube)

After her victory, she dismissed any major concerns about an injury scare. Swiatek provided a positive update claiming that she’s ready to go out on the court again.

Well, on my last match, it hurt me for some time, and yesterday I thought I was more panicking because it’s hard to say after, like, one day, you know, what’s really going on there. But nothing happened, in everybody’s opinion [laughing]. So I’m ready to play some more matches.

Iga Swiatek said

Swiatek and Poland will play either the USA or Czech Republic in the final of the United Cup. The World No.2 will be looking forward to winning it this time around after last year’s heartbreak experience.