Kim Clijsters Makes Massive Iga Swiatek Prediction Amid Talks of Changing Women’s Tennis Format
Iga Swiatek will be participating in the upcoming WTA 1000 tournament in Doha.
Follow Us
Kim Clijsters and Iga Swiatek (via Sportskeeda)
🔍 Explore this post with:
The world of tennis is never quiet for long, but the latest debate circulating the WTA tour feels different. It’s not just about prize money or scheduling complaints this time—it’s about the very fabric of how the game is played. The conversation has officially shifted to whether women should play best-of-five sets at Grand Slams, and tennis legend Kim Clijsters has stepped forward with a take that is turning heads.
While Australian Open director Craig Tiley kicked the door open on this topic, it was Clijsters’ recent comments that really poured gasoline on the fire. The former world No. 1 didn’t just endorse the grueling format; she predicted exactly who would thrive in it. Clijsters said on Love All Podcast:
Craig said at the end of the tournament that he was looking into some potential big-picture adjustments in the coming years. Getting rid of warm-up time and let-best of five sets for women from the quarterfinals on. It would definitely benefit a few players. The first one I can think of is Iga Swiatek. She is super fit and has that really high intensity tennis built in to her game now. I think it would be really hard to win three sets against her.
Swiatek is widely regarded as one of the fittest athletes on the tour. Her intensity rarely drops, and her “bagel factory” reputation comes from her ability to suffocate opponents from the first point to the last. In a best-of-three scenario, a slow start or a sudden hot streak from an underdog can lead to an upset.
But in a best-of-five? That requires maintaining a high level of play for potentially four or five hours. Clijsters believes that Swiatek’s physical engine is simply too big for most rivals to contend with over that distance.
The physical toll and the pushback
Of course, not everyone is popping champagne at the idea of spending five hours on court. While Kim Clijsters sees the competitive upside, there are serious logistical and physical hurdles.
Iga Swiatek herself has been vocal in the past about the relentless nature of the tennis calendar. The season is long, the travel is brutal, and injuries are rampant. Adding potentially 40% more court time to the biggest tournaments of the year is a massive ask.
Critics argue that there are already enough withdrawals and retirements. Would extending the matches elevate the prestige of the women’s game to match the men’s, or would it just result in a war of attrition where the last woman standing is simply the one who isn’t injured?
However, proponents argue that the Grand Slams are supposed to be the ultimate test. There has always been a lingering criticism that women’s finals can sometimes feel anti-climactic if they end in a quick straight-sets rout. A best-of-five format guarantees a battle. It allows for the kind of epic comebacks—coming back from two sets down—that define tennis folklore.
What happens next for the Australian Open?
This isn’t just a theoretical debate anymore. With Craig Tiley floating a timeline that could see changes piloted as soon as 2026 or 2027, the clock is ticking. The Australian Open or the US Open are the most likely candidates to trial this.
If the proposal moves forward, it will fundamentally change how female athletes train. Recovery protocols, nutrition, and off-season conditioning would all need a complete overhaul to handle the extra load.
The debate of equal pay has not been new in women’s tennis. If women start playing a similar format and start thriving in it, perhaps it could settle everybody down.
/techfirstnow/media/agency_attachments/kATjCXskQdJKkXN0OuqW.png)