BNP PARIBAS OPEN

March 10, 2024

Iga Swiatek

Press Conference

I. SWIATEK/L. Noskova

6-4, 6-0

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Iga, how much did the Australian Open match come into your thinking this afternoon? How much more of a push did that give you for the way you played today?

IGA SWIATEK: Yeah, I mean, I was thinking about it, because basically we analyzed it after Australian Open and we focused more on what I did wrong. Because we were before, two weeks of training before tournaments in Middle East, so we talked about this match a lot. But honestly, this time it was much smarter to think about how to just play against Linda rather than focusing on my mistakes from that match.

But still, my coach kind of watched it because it's like the best material to have tactics based on. But I wouldn't say it impacted me like in any negative way. I was kind of motivated to just play better and not do the same mistakes but to improve my game in some aspects.

Q. Were you concerned at a break down in the first set?

IGA SWIATEK: I mean, obviously it wasn't comfortable. I made some mistakes at the beginning. I tried to maybe play to finish the rallies too early, you know. But I knew that if I'm going to try to stay consistent and make a little bit less mistakes, my chances may come. So for sure wasn't comfortable, but I was ready to break back.

Q. Well done today. Can you talk about how you were able to turn it around from 4-2 down, she had three breakpoints for the double break, and the switch just flipped. Was it a couple points or the fact you were able to get out of that game? What was going on mentally there?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, I wouldn't say -- I mean, I had to kind of change some negative thoughts that I had into just thinking that I wasn't thinking about just waiting for my chances. I knew that I'm experienced enough to just, you know, hold it together and not really let myself, you know, let these negative thoughts win (smiling). So I just did that.

And I think my game, you know, clicked a little bit more. I tried not to make these mistakes from, you know, faster rallies that we had, but actually we had a little bit less rallies, longer rallies later.

So I just wanted to be consistent and use my advantages in the way this court works with my game.

Q. Do you like that opportunity that you've had in these last two matches, which is you played very difficult matches very recently against these two players, and now, you know, five weeks later or something like that you get a shot at it again? Or is it the other feeling of, oh, no, them again?

IGA SWIATEK: I mean, I both had positive and negative thoughts about it, because on the one hand it would be nice to play somebody else, because, you know, you may expect having a little bit better draw when you're No. 1 seed, but on the other hand, in Australia I didn't think I could get any tougher draw, so I kind of stopped expecting anything. I was just, you know, focused on myself.

It was positive as well in terms of, you know, the challenge and the way I wanted to improve a little bit and also show myself that I can play a little bit better than, you know, on these courts in Australia.

Q. You just accept the negative thoughts in terms of your process, you just accept that you're going to have negative thoughts and they're natural and they're okay?

IGA SWIATEK: I mean, everybody has it, right? So there's no way of, like, fighting them. It's easier to change them to something else.

Q. You won the last nine games of your first match and the last ten games of the match today. Can you just give us a sensation of what it feels like when you're playing like that, when you're on a roll like that, what sort of emotions you're experiencing?

IGA SWIATEK: I wouldn't say I felt like I'm in a roll, because I was still, you know, so focused because I know that both of these players can easily, you know, switch the momentum back, especially Danielle. She's pretty unpredictable.

So I was constantly on my toes. Even when I had 5-0 in the second set, I kind of just imagined that I'm still in the middle of the match, and I had some thoughts about, oh, soon I may win, but I shut them down to not think that way and just get back to work, because it's not going to win itself on its own.

Q. The announcement came out last week that "Break Point" probably won't be coming back for a third season. Curious how you look back on your participation and what is it about tennis that perhaps makes it more difficult to cover in this format compared to maybe F1 or golf?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, honestly, I didn't know about that. I don't have any answer to that right now.

I was involved only in Season 1, and I gotta say that it was kind of a test for me if I'm going to be comfortable talking about my life and, like, opening up so much. But, well, I think it was a great idea, but I think we have, you know, many different and complicated stories that it's hard to, like, describe them in couple of episodes, you know.

But on the other hand, like, in other sports it's the same case. Honestly, it's hard for me to compare why it didn't work out in tennis but it did in golf and Formula 1. But I can only speak about my perspective. I think that the Netflix guys were really nice and really cooperative but in the end there wasn't much impact we had in terms of editing some stuff we didn't like.

I know I didn't give, like, much access, as much as other players. I accepted that I may not have the final voice, but there were some stuff that were, like, misinterpreted. My appearance in this series kind of caused some hate towards me and my team. So I just wanted to, you know, live my life peacefully and do my job, so that's why I didn't get into the second season.

I don't know why it didn't work out. Honestly, I don't want to criticize or something, but I also, you know, saw some memes about editing and how, you know, Aryna, there was a match -- I think here, the final, Aryna's and Elena's, she was serving on deuce and then Elena was returning from advantage side. And I think anybody who knows tennis is going to notice.

Yeah, it's a shame that it didn't work out.

Q. Since it looks like you'll be done with your work today, I was wondering if you have any plans on watching the Oscar ceremony since we are in the right time zone?

IGA SWIATEK: Oh, maybe now I have. I forgot about it (smiling). Yeah, when is it exactly?

Q. Tonight, 5:00 p.m. 4:00.

IGA SWIATEK: Oh, that's great. That's perfect. Yeah, I'll think about it. I mean, I haven't watched any of the movies. But why not? It's always nice to look at celebrities.

Q. I asked you in 2019 a question about Aga Radwanska, the role she played for Polish tennis, and you told me that she's the best Polish tennis player. You told me that probably you or any other young Polish player will probably need at least ten years on that consistency level. I was wondering if you ever thought in these weeks that you're just two titles away from the amount of titles that Aga Radwanska won and what kind of idea you can have on this?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, I knew how much titles she won, so I knew sometimes it just pops up in the back of my head, but honestly, it doesn't really matter. She played in such a different times with different opponents, and she has different game style. So I'm not, you know, comparing our careers because it just doesn't make any sense, you know.

But for sure I'm always going to be grateful that she was the first one that actually, like, showed us that it's possible and set the path maybe for other players that are going to be on WTA, because we don't have much of a system in Poland. So looking at, like, one person that actually was able to do it, it gives you hope, you know, because it's not, like, we were kind of raised to be tennis stars or something. We didn't have any help, basically. We had to figure it out on our own.

So for me, you know, having Aga, like, make me realize that maybe it's possible, even though when I was younger I didn't even think about being here, because it was kind of abstract (smiling). I mean, most of my peers or friends, they didn't make it and they stopped playing. So I wasn't sure if I'm gonna, you know, be different.

Q. It's a little bit technical question. When you're hitting backhand with your two hands, are you feeling that you are using mainly right hand or more like hitting forehand with your left hand?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, it's hard to say, but it's all about intention, I would say. Sometimes when I want to improve my backhand, I try to tell myself to use more the left hand.

But still, it's hard for me to say how much I'm using -- I mean, I would have to kind of measure it probably in a gym somehow, but it's tough. So I think it's all about the intention.

Q. You try to be 50/50 or...

IGA SWIATEK: I have no idea, honestly. But there are ways to kind of -- you can think that you're going to use one more and it can help you, but physically, I have no idea how much.

Q. To follow up, do you think that the Polish tennis community sees Kerber and Wozniacki also as a little bit part of that community since they share the language and the background?

IGA SWIATEK: Honestly, I have no idea. I hope they are, because that's the way I see it a little bit, and also, you know, they were friends and they spent so much time on tour and they know each other really well, so it's not like it's only language. They actually spent time together.

But I have no idea how fans see it. So I don't know.