World number one, Iga Swiatek made her way into the big leagues after her first Grand Slam win at the Roland Garros 2020. The 22-year-old was quick to go from a ‘potential star’ to the topmost WTA player. Since then the young lady has won 4 Grand Slams and 15 WTA titles!
At such a young age, she made her country proud by becoming the first Polish player to win a major title. The heed that comes with such success means that she will have to deal with the hate and criticism that comes along. Recently, one of the most distasteful opinions on this star comes from the retired American tennis professional, Jimmy Arias.
Former tennis ace doubts Iga Swiatek personality
The former tennis professional doesn’t exactly have a list of notable achievements in his time as a professional. However, at the age of 58, he is currently working as a commentator for Tennis Channel and ESPN. He comments on Iga Swiatek:
“From my standpoint, I don’t think she’s been great for women’s tennis, because she wears her hat so low that you can’t even see her face or her eyes during a match, so you don’t get a connection as much as you could. So, I don’t mind her getting angry in some ways, but I want to see her personality.”
Another horrible take 😂
— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) July 30, 2023
To disregard every achievement that Iga has worked hard for and comment on her personality based on her fashion accessory choices has been received with a lot of backlash from tennis fans. This controversial take on the Polish star has been considered extremely sexist and tennis fans are not too happy with him still continuing as a commentator.
The Box Office, Nick Kyrgios also responds to this comment from the retired player. He writes: ”Another horrible take”, referring to Jimmy’s previous comment on the Australian himself.
"I’d appreciate if you kept my name out of your mouth to keep you relevant"- Nick Kyrgios hits back at Jimmy Arias for mocking his remarks https://t.co/uR3L1h2nCF
— Tennis Tracker (@TrackerTennis) July 31, 2023
Just earlier this week, Jimmy had made a “joking” comment on Kyrgios’s tennis capabilities. The Box Office very quickly shot him down and now, also responds to his unpleasant comment on Iga Swiatek.
Wimbledon showing sparks Swiatek crisis despite being top seed
The World number 1 has won the French Open twice (2020, 2022, 2023) and the US Open once (2022). Having clearly shown that the most difficult clay surface is her favorite, she aspires to be able to learn and adapt to other surfaces as well. She has also proven herself in the hard court.
The grass surface can be extremely complicated, especially for the new generation players. This time, even though she was a top-seeded player in the Wimbledon 2023 draw, she lost in the quarterfinals to Elina Svitolina. Although she has risen drastically over the last three years, Iga is still adapting to her setbacks on the grass surface.
However, Iga Swiatek was quick to bounce back up again in her home tournament, the Poland Open. She won the title without losing a single set. At just 22, Iga is dominating the WTA with minute flaws and hurdles along the way but she still has a long way to go.
