Iga Swiatek initiates an elaborate mental health awareness plan with her psychologist following her donation of prize money in Ostrava
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Iga Swiatek
Following her Ostrava Open final appearance where she decided to donate all her prize money for mental health victims, World No.1 Iga Swiatek has now come forward with an elaborate mental health awareness plan along with her psychologist wherein she also plans to conduct a Q&A session on social media for mental health sufferers.
Swiatek recently received a major upset when she lost in the finals of the Ostrava Open to Barbora Krejcikova in 3 hours and 15 minutes of play that ended her 9-match winning streak since the US Open.
The Pole posted details of her initiative on her Twitter account in both her native language and English.
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Iga Swiatek reveals anxiety episodes first time since becoming World No.1
Swiatek recently revealed how she broke down in anxiety after former No.1 Asheligh Barty retired in March this year, making her the new effective leader in the rankings.
“The fact that Ash decided to end her career, I was number two for less than a week, and then in one day I became number one,” Swiatek said, while adding “That meant that I quickly found myself in a new, incredibly demanding situation.”
“It was hard not to have expectations after winning six tournaments for six months. I formulated them for myself, but also the outside world imposed them on me. There were voices of anxiety about what was happening to me after losing one game,” she added.
However, Swiatek coped rather well with the pressure, as after becoming the new No.1, she won four more titles in a row in Miami, Stuttgart, Rome and the French Open.
The Pole also recently pulled out of the Billie Jean King Cup citing an “impossible” and “unsafe” schedule ahead of her WTA Finals appearance. Swiatek apparently took the decision in order to be fully ready for the WTA Finals, with only one day and miles to cover between the two tournaments becoming a seemingly impossible task. However, some fans on Twitter weren’t impressed as many called her move selfish for money reasons.
ITF chief David Haggerty hit back by putting the blame on the WTA for not taking requests on a change in venue. As things stand in tennis, the ITF currently is in charge of the Grand Slams and country-based team competitions such as the Billie Jean King Cup, while the WTA hosts all other tournaments throughout the year.
“The ITF is sorry that Iga Swiatek is unable to take part and recognizes that the schedule for the two major year-end events presents a challenge for players competing in both events,” President David Haggerty told Reuters.
“We have been working with the WTA to try to coordinate suitable dates. While we were able to confirm the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Glasgow back in June, the WTA Finals venue in Fort Worth, Texas was confirmed during the US Open and restricted in terms of available dates,” he explained.
Also Read: Petra Kvitova analyzes Iga Swiatek’s “men like game” that makes her stand out against her opponents
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Ashish Maggo
(191 Articles Published)