The supremacy of Ash Barty drove her successor as world’s best female player, Iga Swiatek, to work harder than ever, the Australian Open favourite said on Saturday.
Just over a year after the retired Australian champion defeated her in straight sets in Adelaide, Swiatek starred alongside Barty at the AO Kids Day at Melbourne Park.
Swiatek assumed the No.1 ranking when Barty retired last March and has subsequently dominated, posting a 37-match winning streak in a year she won the French and US Opens.
“When she retired, I felt she still had the best tennis out there. I was pretty sad I was not going to be able to compete against her and maybe win,” Swiatek said.
“But on the other hand she gave me a lot in terms of my motivation and my willingness to practise and to … have more variety on the court. She really gave me huge motivation at the beginning of last season to get even better. I’m kind of grateful for that.”
The three-time major champion, who plays German Jule Niemeier on Monday night, has endured a mixed preparation for an Australian Open she is heavily favoured to win.
Iga Swiatek dominated in 2022, posting a 37-match winning streak in a year she won the French and US Opens.Credit:AP
A semi-finalist at Melbourne Park last year when beaten by Danielle Collins, the 21-year-old was well beaten by world No.3 Jessica Pegula in the United Cup in Sydney eight days ago.
Swiatek subsequently withdrew from a tournament in Adelaide this week citing a shoulder injury but said on Saturday that the joint was posing her no issues.
“It’s good. So don’t worry about it. There’s nothing bad going on,” she said.
Swiatek was a step above the competition after Barty’s retirement, dropping just seven matches for the rest of the year after leaving Melbourne 12 months ago.
Ash Barty (third from left) and Iga Swiatek (fifth from left) at Rod Laver Arena on Friday.Credit:Jason South
But she is now the hunted and world No.2 Ons Jabeur, who lost to Swiatek in the US Open decider, declared on Saturday that she wanted to become the world’s top-ranked woman.
“It is not just the number, but also the level and the discipline around it. I want to win more titles and get the grand slam title, for sure,” Jabeur said.
Jabeur believes there are five players from the 128-women draw who are capable of lifting the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup in a fortnight’s time, though she did not nominate the main contenders.
But players including Pegula, Caroline Garcia, Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka and Belinda Bencic have been in strong form in the opening fortnight of the season.
Despite her mixed start to 2023, Swiatek believes she is well suited to performing well in Melbourne.
But she dropped a set against Niemeier when they met in the fourth round of the US Open in September and declared her opening match “is not going to be easy”.
“This is the first grand slam of the season, which makes it a little bit easier in terms of, like, physically because we should be more fresh,” she said. “I’ve always felt like I’m more ready for these longer matches and I can really push myself even harder (here).”
Watch the Australian Open live and free on the Nine Network – Channel 9, 9Gem, and 9NOW.
News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.
