Tears at Swiatek after hard-fought final in Paris

Her tears afterwards said a lot about the tension Iga Swiatek (22) must have felt during the Roland Garros final. The Polish number one in the world won the clay tournament in Paris for the third time in four years, but she was rarely tested on the Court Philippe-Chatrier as this Saturday afternoon. Swiatek needed a little more than two hours and three quarters of an hour to beat Karolína Muchová (6-2, 5-7 and 6-4), but it didn’t look like that halfway through the match.

Swiatek led comfortably 3-0 in the second set and her Czech opponent just couldn’t do too much. Until Muchová broke Swiatek’s service in the fifth game of the second set with a great attacking forehand down the line. Suddenly she was again the player who defeated the Belarusian number two in the world Aryna Sabalenka in a sensational semifinal last Thursday after trailing 5-2 in the third set.

Muchová (26) started to vary as she did in all her matches the past two weeks. She alternated slice forehands with topspin strokes, she hit single-handed backhands just as easily as double-handed ones and, where necessary, she accelerated the game at unexpected moments. At 4-4, Swiatek’s doubts struck for the first time, with a 6-5 deficit she lost track. Muchová made ten points in a row and she not only took the third set, she also took a 2-0 lead in the decisive set.

In a wheelchair

Countless stories have appeared in recent days about the bumpy route that the number 43 in the world had traveled on her way to her first final at a grand slam tournament. A year ago, Muchová left Roland Garros in tears and in a wheelchair after giving up against American Amanda Anisimova in the third round with a badly sprained ankle. Muchová had just returned from a serious knee injury and other minor injuries. Her body was so bruised that a number of doctors told her that she might never be able to play tennis at a top level again.

An unimaginable story for anyone who saw Muchová dominate against Swiatek at the start of the third set. Fully mentally balanced and with a frame that betrayed dozens of hours of fitness, she played tennis rarely seen on the professional women’s circuit. High, deep bales hit the baseline were followed by subtle drop shots that took Swiatek out of her comfort zone. With a clever slice forehand on her opponent’s second serve, Muchová opened the way for herself to take a 4-3 lead. Until the next game a drop shot completely failed and Swiatek came back to 4-4. It was the breaking point in the final.

Suddenly Swiatek was again the player who did not lose a set until the final and only conceded one set point, in the second set of the semi-final against the Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia. Back was the mighty forehand, reminiscent of Steffi Graf in her prime. But Swiatek also managed to increase the pressure on Muchová from the baseline with her double-handed backhand. The Polish won the last two games.

At least ten titles

Swiatek has already won her four grand slam finals, and last year she was also the best at the US Open. With a third title at Roland Garros, she is level with Margaret Court, Monica Seles and Serena Williams, who have also been awarded the Coupe Suzanne-Lenglen three times since the introduction of professional tennis in 1968. She is still far from Chris Evert’s record, but the American told Eurosport that she would not be surprised if Swiatek also won Roland Garros seven times. Swedish former champion Mats Wilander estimated Swiatek at least ten grand slam titles.

It indicates Swiatek’s status in women’s tennis. Since she received the first place in the world rankings last year when the Australian Ashleigh Barty suddenly announced her retirement, she has been undisputedly the best player on the WTA Tour. In 2022, Swiatek won eight tournaments and became the first tennis star since Angelique Kerber in 2016 to win two Grand Slam titles in one calendar year. Swiatek already took her third tournament victory of this year at Roland Garros.

The past few weeks in Paris showed that women’s tennis needs a new figurehead. At the semi-final on Thursday, the stands, especially the places in the sponsor boxes at the track, were empty. In the evening sessions, a women’s match was only scheduled once, because the men’s tournament appeals more to the French.

Women’s tennis needs new stars, recognizable faces, players who more than regularly play for prizes in the four major tournaments. In the last ten years, twenty different winners have been honored at the grand slams, ten of which have been stuck at one title. Swiatek is an exception with her four titles, she is an exceptional player. But she can’t carry the women’s tennis on her own. For that, rivalry must arise on the track, for example with Sabalenka and perhaps also Muchová, if he remains injury-free. Their hour-long three-setters in Paris were certainly promising.