Iga Swiatek has high praise for Aryna Sabalenka, believes rival is a "complete player"

WTA
Tuesday, 21 January 2025 at 04:30
swiateksabalenkamadrid

Despite their ongoing battle for the World No.1 position, Iga Swiatek has a healthy amount of respect for rival Aryna Sabalenka, complimenting the Belarusian's game and mindset.

Swiatek had a tight grip on the No.1 ranking for over 100 weeks, before eventually handing the position over to Sabalenka last year. The big-hitting Belarusian has been on a tear over the past 12 months, winning both the Australian Open and US Open in 2024. Sabalenka is currently on a quest to capture her third consecutive Australian Open title, and will face Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for a spot in the semifinal.

Sabalenka has several great attributes, says Swiatek

Following her fourth round win over qualifier Eva Lys on Monday, Swiatek had high praise for Sabalenka and proceeded to list her rival's best attributes.

"Well, honestly I think we’re the most consistent players on tour, and this is also what the rivalry is about," began Swiatek. “But when we face each other, you know, sometimes, as it was in Cincinnati, it goes to Aryna. Sometimes, like in Rome, it goes to me. It’s not always that we have tight matches, but we do, like Madrid final, like US Open semis.
"So I guess, you know, we’re just both good and feel like we are covering every aspect of the game in terms of the preparation. We’re just really professional and also pushing each other to work harder.


“So yeah, I mean, how does it feel? Like, you have to just be there, like, on point and 100% ready, because playing top player is always hard, so yeah. I don’t know. I feel like she has a complete kind of technique, like pretty smooth. She’s just solid from every position on the court, even like volleys and stuff that we don’t use, like, that often on singles.
“Yeah, I mean, she has variety, and she can play flat, she can play topspin. Like, basically I would say that Aryna is kind of a complete player."

Swiatek will face rising American star Emma Navarro for a spot in the semifinals.

claps 0visitors 0

Just In

Popular News