Iga Swiatek knows the details of her doping case, and while she doesn't necessarily know everything about other cases, she knows why they can't be compared.
The current World No. 2 player on the WTA Tour was suspended for one month from competing, missing the China Open in Beijing and the subsequent Wuhan Open.
At that moment, it was not known that she missed those tournaments because of a suspension, as she blamed her withdrawals on different reasons, such as a coaching change.
Now, we know that the reason was her positive doping test and subsequent case, which was immediately compared to those of the likes of Jannik Sinner and Simona Halep.
While Sinner avoided any suspension, Halep had to spend over a year away from the tennis courts, fighting an exhausting battle that eventually ended at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled in her favor.
All of these cases were different, and while fans immediately tried spotting similarities and differences in the treatment of the players, Swiatek insists that's not possible.
The 23-year-old player talked to Anita Werner on Fakty po Faktach for Polish TVN24, diving deeper into the details of her case, especially when it came to her emotions.
For Polish tennis, this was not the first doping case, as Kamil Majchrazk, an ATP player who was ranked 75th in the world in 2022, was suspended in June 2023 for 13 months.
Speaking during the interview, Swiatek admitted that she was aware of the fact that fans would immediately start comparing all of these cases, but since all of them were different, in her opinion, these comparisons don't make sense.
"I know that people automatically need to compare such situations to others that have happened before, but the truth is that each of these cases is completely different. And the process of proving innocence will also vary accordingly."
Swiatek also believes that tennis players shouldn't even be questioned about these matters. While they were involved in their cases, they have no idea about the details of the other cases.
The five-time Grand Slam champion said that such questions were for the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), which ruled in all of these cases, rather than for players.
"It’s hard to compare me to Sinner, Halep, or Kamil Majchrzak because each of us is dealing with a different issue. I think that’s more of a question for ITIA than for the player. My fate, just like others’, was in their hands, and they decide how each case unfolds."
She also emphasized that she trusts the process, believing that it was objective, even though in her case, she received a suspension, which she would be happier if she avoided.
"I trust that this process is objective, that everything is done according to the rules, and that no one judges a player either way based on their ranking. But whether that is actually the case, I think that’s the question for ITIA."