THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 5, 2021

Iga Swiatek

Press Conference

O. JABEUR/I. Swiatek

5-7, 6-1, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. After you won the first set, I think you won the last four games of the first set and then obviously the match seemed to change then. Ons, I don't know whether she went up a level or whether you went off a bit. What was your thinking about the way the match panned out today?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, I think from the beginning, because we were like battling for dominance because we both knew the girl who is going to attack, going to move forward, is going to win. So basically that's why probably when I lost that dominance, the second set was so quick.

Yeah, for sure my serve didn't help at the beginning of second set, and I kind of lost a little bit of confidence, but also in the first set, you know, everything was just -- I mean, the reason that I won that set was the balls that are two centimeters in and not out, and everything was like risky from both of us. There was like little margin. Yeah, it was pretty tough set.

I think it cost me a lot, but, yeah, I'm just not happy that I didn't, you know, use the, I don't know, the flow to go on the next one.

But I also think that Ons was like really relaxed in the second set, because maybe she felt like she has nothing to lose. You know, she's playing great tournament. She's just playing really intelligent tennis.

When she's in and when she gets the ball right, she can play anything. So it was pretty tough.

Q. I was wondering if you could just reflect on your Wimbledon. What were you pleased with? What were you not pleased with? What are your thoughts on your tournament?

IGA SWIATEK: Yeah, I had a great week last week. Right now it's pretty hard to actually, I don't know, see that because I just lost, but, you know, it's tennis. You're probably always going to lose the last match.

Yeah, you know, you kind of have to get used to it a little bit, because tennis is a bit frustrating. You can have great week, but then, you know, just lose and you forget that you had a nice tournament.

I'm trying not to do that. I'm trying to see how much I have learned and how I was feeling even before the first round, you know. Like winning just one match was a great achievement for me. This grass season is really a positive for me and it gave me a lot. I hope I'm going to use that in future years.

Q. I would like to ask you about the Olympics in Tokyo, how special are for you that you won a medal in Youth Games in my country, in Argentina. And if you have some talks in the past with your father that was in Seoul '88, I guess it was?

IGA SWIATEK: Yeah, you know, Olympics, they are really special. I know that like many tennis players approach it differently, but for me it's like in any other sport, it's just, you know, one of the most important tournaments of the year.

For sure we're gonna be focusing right now on that to prepare well and to, you know, do everything so I can adjust quickly to the temperature in Tokyo and to all the, you know, weather factors. It's gonna be hard, for sure, and switching surfaces like twice in one month is like pretty exhausting for body, but I'm well prepared and I think I'm going to be ready.

You know, I did a transition to grass in like few days and it was okay after some matches, so on hard court it's gonna be easier, for sure, because I have been playing on hard court all my life.

Yeah, I mean, I'm just looking forward to that. We are going to see how it's going to go. I know that the conditions are going to be tough. Also, it's going to be my first time on Olympics, and there is going to be like a lot of pressure, because this tournament is just different. I don't think like the experience from Youth Olympic Games gives anything. Maybe a little bit, but I think it's going to be totally different, so we're going to see how it's going to go.

Q. What makes Ons so tough when she's playing well? Because there are so many different things that she can do well. How do you respond? She can hit hard, hit the variety. What makes it so tough when she's at her peak?

IGA SWIATEK: You know, well, first of all, she has great returns, so if someone is serving really well, it's like taking your biggest weapon. Yeah, I mean, I felt today that even when I was serving really good and, you know, pretty fast, she was like not blocking and giving me shots even faster. That was pretty frustrating.

You know, she has like great touch. When she's loosened up, she can also play really fast. Also when she's serving, I feel like she's not like her (indiscernible) point, it's not really high, so the ball is going really flat. It's also hard to receive that, because usually it bounces like more up.

I mean, she just has all the skills to play on grass, and that's great. She can close the net and she's pretty confident at it. I feel like first set it was just a great game and really like on the edge sometimes. So even though I won it, I knew that she's gonna play well in next sets and it's gonna be tough.

Yeah, I think she just has a flow, as well. She's using all the skills that she has. Yeah, it's working out well for her.