Iga Swiatek Insists She Is Not Thinking About Reclaiming World No. 1 Ranking
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Iga Swiatek missed out on finishing as the year-end WTA world No. 1 in 2024 after Aryna Sabalenka overtook her. But the 23-year-old says taking back the No. 1 spot is not in her thoughts.
Swiatek and Sabalenka had epic battles for the year-end No. 1 ranking in 2023 and 2024. The Pole trailed her rival before the 2023 WTA Finals and was the underdog in the fight heading into the season-ending tournament.
However, Swiatek rose to the challenge spectacularly at the event in Cancun. She defeated Sabalenka in the semifinals and crushed Jessica Pegula in the final to win the prestigious title and secure the year-end No. 1 ranking.
Sabalenka found herself in a similar position after last year's Wimbledon. The two-time Australian Open champion was ranked at No. 3 behind Swiatek and Gauff, and finishing as the year-end No. 1 seemed highly unlikely.
She then won the US Open, Cincinnati Open, and Wuhan Open in the following few months to overtake Swiatek. Her place as the year-end No. 1 was guaranteed after the eventual champion Coco Gauff defeated Swiatek in the round-robin stage of the WTA Finals.
Sabalenka was helped by Swiatek being provisionally suspended during the Asian swing last year after testing positive for the prohibited substance trimetazidine. She eventually accepted a short one-month suspension for the offense.
The ongoing Australian Open is the first since 2022 that Swiatek did not begin as the No. 1 seed. That did not stop her from reaching the third round after a win against Katerina Siniakova before crushing Rebecca Sramkova 6-0, 6-2.
Swiatek was asked about the world No. 1 ranking in a press conference after beating Sramkova. The four-time French Open champion admitted she felt pressure in the previous two Australian Opens as the world No. 1, although it was not as intense in 2024 as in 2023.
"I remember for the past two years I started at No. 1, so I felt like I needed to show from the beginning of the season my tools and what I can play. Yeah, there was a lot of pressure starting the year as No. 1, but I think overall last year I didn't think about it this much anyway."
The world No. 2 learned in 2024 that she does not have complete influence over what happens with her ranking and thinks it is better to focus on her game and let the ranking take care of itself.
"Also, I realized last year that I don't have 100% influence on what happens with my ranking sometimes. So now I just focus on tennis. If I play well, I know I'll be back at No. 1. If I don't and Aryna plays better, she'll be No. 1. I think it's just smarter to focus on tennis, and the ranking will come after that."
Swiatek's words about not having 100% influence might have referred to her being docked ranking points last year for not playing in six mandatory WTA 500 tournaments. Sabalenka also had points taken away, but not as many as her rival.
Those lost ranking points did not influence the year-end No. 1 race since Sabalenka would have done enough to secure the spot anyway, but it caused much controversy at the time.
