Iga Swiatek's Team Releases Statement After Incident With Hater In Miami
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Iga Swiatek was subjected to verbal abuse from an obsessed hater during a 2025 Miami Open practice. Her PR specialist, Daria Sulgostowska, made a statement about the incident.
In a recent interview, Swiatek mentioned that Polish fans can be very demanding and make unhelpful criticisms of her. She told them the approach was not the right way to support her.
However, the Pole who abused her during a practice session in Miami was not a fan. He is an individual who has posted many times about Swiatek on social media and clearly thinks about her an unhealthy amount.
The personed videoed himself shouting at Swiatek about her mother and psychologist Daria Abramowicz. He then boasted about it afterward and made unsubstantiated claims about Swiatek and her mother having a bad relationship because of Abramowicz.
Some fans also noticed that a figure not usually in Swiatek's team was in her box during one of the 23-year-old's Miami Open matches, creating speculation that it was done because the obsessed man planned to attend the match.
Sulgostowska's statement confirmed those suspicions. She said the man's actions were reported to the tournament and the WTA, who immediately gave Swiatek additional security to alleviate any fears.
"Safety is the highest priority. We monitor the network to detect such matters. Constructive criticism is one thing, threats, hate speech or even disturbing training is another - this cannot be tolerated."
"We reported the matter to the tournament organizer, as well as the WTA, who reacted immediately and took additional precautions, such as additional security, for which we are very grateful." Ensuring the safety of the players is the most important thing, they are at the center of the action and our task is simply to protect them."
It appears that the man who caused the stress did not attend the match in the end. Hopefully, he never goes near Swiatek again, or is clearly identified by the WTA and receives a suspension from all professional events.
The anxiety of this story is awful under any circumstances, but there had already been increased attention on Swiatek after she was much angrier than usual during her 2025 Indian Wells Open semifinal loss to Mirra Andreeva.
Swiatek exchanged frustrated words with coach Wim Fissette, complained to the umpire about something Andreeva was doing, and hit a ball back in the direction of a ball kid that luckily landed over his head.
The four-time French Open champion wrote an honest social media post after the match, admitting her behavior was influenced by the previous months, including receiving a one-month ban after melatonin tablets she bought were contaminated with trimetazidine.
Swiatek also said that she gets criticized when showing little emotion or when she gets fiery on the court. That leaves the world No. 2 feeling like many want to find something to be annoyed about no matter what.
Having to deal with people shouting abuse during practice sessions makes Swiatek's behavior understandable. Few others can relate to the stresses of being harassed and needing extra security.
