Iga Swiatek says she has learnt a lesson while competing at the WTA Finals as she took pressure off herself to emerge triumphant in Cancun.
The Pole revealed that she no longer felt haunted by the shadows of her breakthrough 2022 season. Swiatek overpowered WTA #5 Jessica Pegula 6-1, 6-0 in the Championship match to bag her maiden WTA Finals title.
On his way to final, the four-time major champion dismantled Aryna Sabalenka, 6-3, 6-2 in semis to reclaim the top spot and in process sealed second-straight year-end No. 1 title. Earlier in US Open, Swiatek lost the coveted World No. 1 rank to the hard-hitting Belarusian after incurring a R4 loss against Jelena Ostapenko at Flushing Meadows.
The 22-year-old dropped just 20 games in her five straight-set victories during round-robin and knockout stages in a chaotic Cancun venue. Previously, Serena held the Champion’s record of 32 lost games at the WTA Finals since the round-robin format was reintroduced in 2003.
In another remarkable run, Swiatek has claimed a tour-topping six titles and registered a brilliant 68-11 (86.1%) win record in 2023 season. Speaking following her triumph in Cancun, the Polish star discussed the achievement of backing up her stellar 2022 season and regaining the world No. 1 crown she lost at US Open earlier in September.
“2022 was so amazing that I don’t know if it’s gonna be possible for me to repeat a season like that,” said the Pole in a post-match interview.
“So I just didn’t feel at the end like I’m in the shadow anymore because I knew that I’m having another great season. And honestly, I kind of accepted that I’m not going to have a season like that, like in 2022, and I just looked forward.
“I learned my lesson and this time I didn’t want [the No 1 ranking] to have an impact on me. It did a little bit – it’s hard not to think about stuff like that – but actually, when I went on court, I knew that I had to focus on different things.
“And actually, the conditions here that were kind of tricky, also helped me to just focus on my footwork, my shots, and that just kept me busy from thinking about all of that.
“To return to world No 1 is a dream come true. I’d say I wasn’t expecting that this season. I was hoping that next year would be the year. But I seem to be working hard, concentrating on the right things. So I’m very happy.”
Swiatek has concluded her 2023 campaign on an 11-match winning streak and dropped just one set during the final run in which she also clinched the WTA 1000 title in Beijing in October.