Tennis-Perfectionist Swiatek savours managing the pressure to win fourth French Open

PARIS (Reuters) – Iga Swiatek described her French Open triumph on Saturday as an emotional win and said she was proud to have handled the pressure of being the favourite to win a third consecutive title on the Parisian clay.

World number one Swiatek steamrolled Italian surprise finalist Jasmine Paolini in straight sets, 6-2 6-1, to claim her fifth Grand Slam title, and fourth at Roland Garros, but said that being a perfectionist meant there had been an added challenge.

“I’m a perfectionist, so there’s always pressure on me. I’m fine handling my own pressure. When outside pressure hits me, it is a little bit worse. But I managed it really well at this tournament,” Swiatek told reporters.

“It was an emotional win because I felt a lot of stress yesterday and today in the morning. And I knew if I’m going to just focus on tennis I can kind of fight through it, and at the end it all went how I wanted. So I just felt really proud of myself.”

Dubbed the queen of clay by fans and pundits for her dominance on the surface, Swiatek dropped one set throughout the tournament, in a second-round epic with Naomi Osaka where she had to save a match point.

She shrugged that off and blew away all comers, showing her might by putting Anastasia Potapova to the sword in the fourth round with a 40-minute 6-0 6-0 victory.

The 23-year-old Pole, who also won the Roland Garros title in 2020, said she was fully aware that perfectionism was a double-edged sword.

“When I do anything, I want to do it 100%. I think when you’re a perfectionist, you are a perfectionist everywhere,” Swiatek said.

“But this is a tricky thing because it helps you to be better but sometimes it can be huge baggage as well.”

Looking ahead to the grasscourt season and next month’s Wimbledon, Swiatek said she hoped to adapt quickly to the change of surface, like she did last year when she made the quarter-finals.

“Last year’s result was pretty nice. I feel like every year it’s easier for me to adapt to grass,” Swiatek said.

“But it’s a huge challenge. If I would lose here earlier, maybe I would be able to play two more weeks on grass and then be a better grass player. But if I would choose, I love playing on clay, so I’m not going to give up that ever.”

(Reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide; editing by Clare Fallon)