US OPEN

August 28, 2023

Iga Swiatek

Press Conference

I. SWIATEK/R. Peterson

6-0, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Can you just assess your performance this afternoon.

IGA SWIATEK: Well, for sure I'm really happy. I feel like, you know, I could play proactively from the beginning and just didn't stop. I'm just happy that this was such a nice first round, because first rounds are usually tricky.

Also, I'm happy that I kind of had time to implement all of the stuff that I practiced on.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. You say first rounds are tricky. You also have one of the best first-round records at the slams on the tour. What's tricky about them in light of, you know, the fact that you win most of them?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, it depends. You know, there is always different obstacle. Well, for sure on other tournaments I think it's even more tricky because in slams we have time to get used to the courts or just to have more time to feel everything better. We have usually one week off before, you know.

Usually this is, yeah, the case, that you have to just get used to everything, you know. Sometimes you just feel a little bit more pressure because you're, like, not into rhythm yet and you just kind of have to -- like you can get distracted more easily, I feel. I remember when I played my first matches in US Open, I always felt like there is so much going on around, and it was a little bit tougher to focus.

But this year I didn't feel it, because I practiced couple of times on the center court. Even, you know, with all the kids around, because I think the entry was free and so many people came to watch our practices. It was amazing and I got used to the noise and everything.

Q. You have this growing bond with Mikaela Shiffrin and also Lindsey Vonn being a fan of yours. Is it something where skiing is a sport that you enjoy, or is it something that you even have time to do on the side?

IGA SWIATEK: Oh, my God.

Q. Talk about your relationship with them.

IGA SWIATEK: No, last time I skied was when I was seven and I had accident that I could have died so I really got scared. I don't get scared that easily but this for sure stopped me. Yeah, that was the last time.

I'm sad about it, because now when I'm a pro, I don't really have time to do sports like that. I wish I could, you know.

But for sure, yeah, it was a kind of traumatic experience for me when I was younger. So maybe it was wise, you know, to stop, because when you're scared of such sports that, you know, kind of when you need, you know, a little bit higher adrenaline and when you need to be focused and ready, it's pretty dangerous, you know.

But for sure I'm happy that, you know, I had a chance to meet them. I haven't met Mikaela yet because she's always on tour the same as me and it's hard to find time.

They are huge inspirations for me. I don't know. I just feel like our sports are kind of connected, because these are the only two sports where I feel individual with, like, womens kind of having, I don't know, the same events and the same, you know, rhythm as guys. We kind of have similar experiences, especially I feel that when I hear all the interviews of Mikaela, I feel like we are kind of the same sometimes (smiling).

So, yeah, it's just nice to have somebody you can look up to, and that shares the same experiences that you can learn from. I'm happy that they are also so open to talk about everything. Yeah, that's pretty cool.

Q. Next up is Daria Saville. What are your thoughts going against her? She was joking just now about playing you, I just hope I don't get double bageled. She says it's pretty exciting to be playing on one of the biggest courts. Her goal, her aim on this comeback was to play on the biggest courts at all the majors. Your thoughts?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, honestly, I have to analyze her game, because I think we may have played once before her injuries or surgery that she has. I'm not sure what's her story, you know. But she's a great person. We always, when we pass each other, we say hi and she's really positive.

So about the game, I can't really say a lot. I will for sure get prepared, but, you know, it really doesn't matter for me. I have my kind of image of tennis that I want to play and show, and I'm just going to try and focus on myself, you know.

Every match is, you know, really important. Doesn't matter for me who's gonna be on the other side or what court it's gonna be. I just want to play my best game that's possible any day. Yeah, I'll get ready, for sure.

Q. What are your favorite aspects of playing at the US Open? What are your least-favorite aspects of playing there?

IGA SWIATEK: I don't know. Because it's, like, changing every year. Because every year I feel like I can handle a little bit more.

For sure when I was younger, the amount of people, it was all really overwhelming for me. Before these courts were, like, couple years ago, especially during pandemic, these courts were the fastest on tour. Now it's switching back a little bit, because I remember my coach said when Aga Radwanska played it was slower than Australian Open here. But during pandemic it was much faster, and for sure it was really kind of hard for me when I didn't have skills yet to play against, you know, players that have been on tour and can play any surface, you know.

So it's changing every year. I don't feel like it's, like, really hard for me to focus right now, so I really enjoy the noise and the crowd and it's giving me a lot of energy. It did, especially last year at the last stages I was pretty tired. Like, maybe the traffic sometimes. Yeah, I don't like the traffic (smiling).

Q. This is a very, very general question. You're still a young person but you've been playing tennis for a long time. If you had to really step back and just reflect on what this sport, life lessons or the insights, if you had to pick one or two tennis has given to you as a young person, what could you possibly say?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, I don't know. I mean, I don't know, because it's hard to, like, find the lesson that I'm going to be able to use for the rest of my life. For sure I learned that you're not going to be ready and you're not going to be feeling 100% on every tournament. You're going to be prepared for every tournament but you still have to give best and play your best tennis and you still can win matches, even though you're feeling like that.

Because when I was younger, I felt like when I had this in the back of my mind, I already started from a little bit lower position. Now I know that the tour is so long that it's impossible to get ready for every tournament. You just have to kind of go with the flow and play your best game possible.

I don't know. There are so many lessons, like, it's hard to, like, pick one. I don't know. This sport, like, forced me to kind of grow up faster and develop my mental skills, physical, and my knowledge about tennis overall, that it's just I'm kind of so connected to this sport that it's hard for me to look at it from a distance and just pick one lesson.

I don't know. Maybe when I'll be older I'll be wiser and I'll be able to answer the question.

Q. You said in the answer to the first question that you're happy today with how you implemented things that you've been working on in practice. I just wondered if you could share what those things are.

IGA SWIATEK: Well, I would like to keep it kind of in my team's bubble, you know, because these are the things that I want to improve. So I don't feel like there is a space for me to talk about it (smiling).

But for sure I felt really confident today, and I'm happy that I had time to practice, because honestly this season has been so intense that there hasn't been, you know, much time for me to practice. I just practiced, like, before Montreal and before Wimbledon but on different surface.

I'm happy that I had the time and I feel more solid now, but I won't tell you specifically, I'm sorry.

Q. I wanted to ask you about how when you spoke about fatigue after Cincinnati, I wonder how much of that is mental and how much physical? How were you able to recover and get yourself together before US Open?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, I would say every match was really intense in Cincinnati. Sometimes I had to come back from being in trouble. The fatigue was both, you know, mental and physical.

Also because, you know, it's second part of the season so you already feel like you have played so many matches and so many tournaments that it's just a little bit, it takes you a little bit to recover compared to, like, first part of the season.

But it's combined, you know. These matches were really long and intense and in really humid conditions. It was hot. So it wasn't easy for body and mind as well, because, you know, mentally I needed to kind of push, you know, and kind of go beyond my comfort zone on every match.

But I don't remember the second part.

Q. What have you done to recover?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, I had a few days off, and that's enough for me at that stage. Nothing special. Just, you know, kind of I was still busy, but I wasn't practicing and I just enjoyed these days when I didn't have to, you know, do the whole, you know, warmup routine. I just also kind of went to the city and just enjoyed New York a little bit, yeah.