Rafael Nadal Is 'GOAT On Every Surface' According To Iga Swiatek
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Iga Swiatek paid the ultimate respect to her idol, Rafael Nadal, with her recent comments. She called him the GOAT (greatest of all time) on all surfaces.
Swiatek often spoke about how Nadal inspired her in her tennis career. Like the Spaniard, the Polish player thrives on the clay courts. It's a surface on which she has enjoyed the most success in her career so far.
The Pole is a five-time Grand Slam champion and four of those trophies came at Roland Garros. In fact, she has won the last three editions of the French Open. Swiatek has also triumphed four times in the French capital out of the last five editions.
In 2022, she won her only hard-court Grand Slam title at the US Open. On top of that, she has enjoyed success also at multiple hard-court WTA 1000 events, such as the Qatar Open in Doha, where she recently extended her winning streak.
Her success on the hard courts is also one of the reasons why Swiatek doesn't want to be known only as a great clay-court player. In a recent interview with The New York Times, the WTA World No. 2 player admitted that she prefers the surface, but she also doesn't want to be seen as a one-dimensional player.
"It’s just physics. On clay, it’s going to be a bit easier because my topspin will jump higher and my movements will be maybe better than what other girls can bring with the sliding and changing direction. But on hard courts, I feel like I’m a good player as well."
To better explain her situation, Swiatek drew a comparison with Rafael Nadal. There is no doubt about the fact that he's the greatest clay-court player of all time, but according to the Polish player, Nadal's success elsewhere was often overlooked because of his clay-court qualities.
Swiatek explained how Nadal has won other majors multiple times, something others didn't manage to do. But because he won the French Open 14 times, his wins at other majors looked miniscule.
"It was the same with Rafa (Nadal). Everybody always talked about clay, but like he’s the GOAT (greatest of all time) basically on every surface. Also, winning Wimbledon twice. Not every player can have these results on even one surface."
"This is something that people are focusing on, and I am talking about this as well, because clay is where I have the most fun, but I love hard courts as well. And I feel like I have my weapons and I can use them. I want to be an all-surface player for sure."
So while Swiatek is aware that she thrives on the clay courts, she doesn't want to be remembered only as a great clay-court player. The Pole wants to do well on all surfaces.
