“I don’t like playing her,” Iga Swiatek makes her thoughts clear on Jelena Ostapenko having failed to beat the Latvian yet again

Iga Swiatek looks back at her fourth-round loss at the 2023 US Open and her poor record against the Latvian.

“I don’t like playing her,” Iga Swiatek makes her thoughts clear on Jelena Ostapenko having failed to beat the Latvian yet again

Jelena Ostapenko and Iga Swiatek (Images: Al Jazeera,/Imago)

Polish professional tennis star, Iga Swiatek recently lost her World No.1 ranking after dominating the WTA rankings list for 75 weeks straight following her unexpected fourth-round loss at the 2023 US Open. She lost against Jelena Ostapenko, taking their head-to-head count to 0-4 for Iga and Jelena, respectively. In a conversation with Eurosport, Swiatek talked about her latest loss at the 2023 Flushing Meadows.

Defending champion at the US Open 2023, Iga Swiatek lost to 20th seed, Jelena Ostapenko with a score of 6-3, 3-6, 1-6. Her failure at the title run also came with the loss of her ranking as she was replaced by former World No.2, Aryna Sabalenka. Ostapenko went on to lose the quarter-final round to this year’s US Open champ, Coco Gauff.

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“I don’t like playing with Ostapenko. There are simply some players who are uncomfortable to play with. I bet she has the opposite situation and she especially likes my style. This is completely natural in tennis,” the 22-year-old told Eurosport.

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Elaborating on how she feels about her loss to Ostapenko, Swiatek added, “There is no point in falling into a catastrophe, we have to move forward.”

Swiatek revealed that such a tournament “can happen”. She also discussed her prospects at the upcoming 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. “They are obviously a priority, but it will be difficult to be in optimal shape'” she said.

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Iga Swiatek withdraws from the WTA Guadalajara Open

The French Open champ announced her withdrawal from the upcoming WTA 1000 event in Guadalajara, Mexico. Citing a “change of schedule” as the reason behind her decision, the 22-year-old shared a statement on her social media handles.

Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek(via: The Globe and Mail)

“I need to listen to my body, and as the season is very intense – our no. 1 priority is to play it until the end in good health and plan it wisely so we wouldn’t risk an injury,” the Pole told Eurosport. She also revealed that she is planning to represent Poland at the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024. Swiatek will be seen next at the WTA 500 event in Tokyo.

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