Iga Swiatek says she’s not looking to replace Aryna Sabalenka as the World No. 1 as she clarifies her goal for the China Open

Iga Swiatek is happy about not being the World No.1 anymore.

Iga Swiatek says she’s not looking to replace Aryna Sabalenka as the World No. 1 as she clarifies her goal for the China Open

Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek (Credits: Tennis.com)

World No. 2 Iga Swiatek revealed that she felt free of the baggage of being the World No.1. The Russian player Veronika Kudermetova caused a huge upset as she defeated Swiatek at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo on Friday. The Pole crashed down against the world No. 19 with a scoreline of 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

The 22-year-old spent 75 weeks ruling the rankings as the top seed. Swiatek was dethroned by Aryna Sabalenka after she suffered an early exit at the US Open. Swiatek declared at a news conference in Beijing that she had accepted her demotion and had “stopped thinking about rankings at all.”

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She revealed that it feels like a baggage has been removed from her shoulders. Swiatek felt that she could now focus more on getting back to her calm and normal rhythm of partaking. She feels it’s easier to chase somebody because that’s how her mindset has been her whole life.

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The second seed feels that instead of chasing rankings she wants to improve and change her technique and tactics.

She said “I felt like there was some baggage off my shoulders & I could focus more on getting back to the more peaceful & normal rhythm of practicing. It’s a little bit easier to come back to the mindset of chasing somebody because that’s what we’ve been doing our whole lives.
My main goal in China is to try & do some stuff differently on the court in terms of technique & tactics to develop as a player & not chase rankings.“

Also Read: “Fake world number 1 and biggest fraud” – Iga Swiatek’s shocking defeat in Japan Open ignites fans disappointment

Iga Swiatek suffers quarterfinal defeat at the Pan Pacific Open

The quarterfinal at Tokyo was a thrilling one. Iga Swiatek was stunned by Veronica Kudermetova in a three-set conquest. She lost with a score of 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

Iga Swiatek (Credits: NDTV Sports)

The World No. 2 was playing for the first time after her 4th-round defeat at the US Open. The match proved to be challenging for her. In the opening set, the Polish tennis star made numerous unforced errors resulting in Kudermetova securing a double break. The Russians led the first set 4-0. Swiatek tried to make a comeback but couldn’t manage to take back the set.

However, she settled the scores in the second set. The deciding third set saw Swiatek give Kudermetova the advantage. She conceded an early break and a double fault which led to her losing the match.

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