Iga Swiatek Told She Has ‘Officially Hit Panic Button’ with Her Form

Iga Swiatek will be chasing her first title of the season at the Italian Open.

Iga Swiatek Told She Has ‘Officially Hit Panic Button’ with Her Form

Iga Swiatek (Image via X/Iga archive)

In Short
  • Iga Swiatek has not reached a semifinal in any of her seven singles tournaments this year.
  • She recently parted ways with coach Wim Fissette and hired Francisco Roig, but continues to struggle with her form.
  • Swiatek will focus on the upcoming Italian Open, where she is a three-time champion, after a disappointing Madrid Open exit.

Iga Swiatek has so far played seven singles tournaments this year, and in none of them has she been able to progress to the semifinal. Except for the Madrid Open and the Miami Open, she exited after reaching the quarterfinals.

In Madrid, an illness forced her to hand the walkover to Ann Li in the third set, and it saw the six-time Major champion leave Arantxa Sanchez Stadium in tears. But in Miami, she suffered an opening-round exit, losing the match to countrywoman Magda Linette.

After her shock exit, Swiatek parted ways with Wim Fissette, headed to Mallorca to train at the Rafa Nadal Academy alongside Rafael Nadal, and soon she announced that she had hired her idol’s former coach, Francisco Roig.

But despite these changes, Swiatek still struggled. At the Stuttgart Open, the two-time champion lost to Mirra Andreeva in the quarterfinals. Recently on the Nothing Major podcast, Steve Johnson and Sam Querrey discussed who the best clay-court players are at present.

On Tennis Channel, we were going over the top five clay courters right now, and I didn’t have Iga in my top five. I got some pushback from it because of her clay-court results over the last five years. She has been the best over the last five years. But right now, she is not. I think confidence is the most important trait in tennis. She came into Madrid having not made a semi-final! She could not have been coming in very confident right now.

Sam Querrey said

The last time Swiatek won a clay-court title was at the 2024 Roland Garros by dismantling Jasmine Paolini, completing a historic three-peat. She, in fact, lifted three clay-court titles that year, including the Italian Open and the Madrid Open, defeating Aryna Sabalenka in both.

I’d put her in at five out of respect, but I don’t think she is a close five. I would put her on past results, but I don’t think she is the fifth-best player right now. I was not hitting the panic button until this week, but we have officially hit the panic button now.

Steve Johnson said

Last year on the clay swing, Swiatek failed to reach a final. She even registered a bagel in her semifinal match against eventual runner-up Sabalenka at the French Open.

What’s next for Iga Swiatek?

Now that the Madrid Open is done and dusted, Iga Swiatek will be focusing on the last WTA 1000 on clay – the Italian Open. The 24-year-old is a three-time champion in the tournament, winning in 2021, 2022, and 2024 by defeating Karolina Pliskova, Ons Jabeur, and Aryna Sabalenka, respectively.

Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek (Image via X/United Cup)

But last year, her run ended in the third round, losing in straight sets to Danielle Collins. Swiatek is the winner of 25 singles titles, 10 of which she clinched on clay. The last time Swiatek won a tour-level title was at the 2025 Korea Open, while the last time she won a Big Title was at the 2025 Cincinnati Open.

The former World No.1 is the winner of 11 WTA 1000 titles. Last year, she played four finals, winning titles in Wimbledon, Seoul, and Cincinnati. The Italian Open kicks off on May 5. Jasmine Paolini will be playing as the defending champion. The Italian ace defeated Coco Gauff in the final last year.

Marta Kostyuk will be chasing her back-to-back WTA 1000 title after her victory at the Madrid Open. The Ukrainian ace denied Mirra Andreeva her third WTA 1000 title. Kostyuk will also be chasing her third back-to-back title, having lifted the WTA 250 title in Rouen before the Madrid event.

Also read: Jannik Sinner Downplays Comparison with Carlos Alcaraz on Clay After Securing Madrid Final Slot