Iga Swiatek discussed the errors she and coach Wim Fissette noticed during her defeat at the WTA Finals to Coco Gauff.
Swiatek started her WTA Finals campaign with a victory against Barbora Krejcikova. She needed a dramatic comeback to defeat the Wimbledon champion, who led by a set and 3-0 at one stage.
That also kept Swiatek's slim hopes of finishing as the year-end No. 1 alive. The Pole started the tournament more than 1,000 ranking points behind Sabalenka before the WTA Finals began.
But Sabalenka secured the year-end No. 1 spot for the first time after Swiatek's straight-sets loss to Gauff. It was just her second defeat to the American in 12 meetings.
Although Gauff is a formidable opponent, Swiatek was far below her usual level. The four-time French Open made an uncharacteristic number of unforced errors from the start to the end of the match.
Gauff spoke after the match about how difficult it was to manage the conditions because of the altitude in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but the 20-year-old adjusted her game better to contain mistakes and win 6-3, 6-4.
Swiatek's loss was her second match with new coach Wim Fissette. He hired the Belgian, who had two spells working with Naomi Osaka, after splitting with longtime coach Tomas Wiktorowski.
The former world No. 1 had not played any tournaments for nearly two months since the US Open when she lost in the quarterfinal to Jessica Pegula. That means Swiatek not being at her vintage best is understandable.
In an interview with Canal+ Sport after the match, Swiatek admitted to making some bad decisions during the contest against Gauff and pointed to her serve as being a particular issue.
"I know what mistakes I made and this match will force me to be more disciplined in the future. I know when I made bad decisions, which shots failed and how not to repeat them."
"My serve is sometimes shaky. There were games where I served great, but there were also games when I felt strange. Next time I will try to make it much more stable."
The Pole said she and Fissette quickly realized the mistakes she made afterward and thought her mind was somewhat rusty in just her second match since the US Open.
"We both noticed what mistakes I made. I think I didn’t rotate the ball enough, because towards the end I played flat and forcefully, which is not my style. However, because of the fact that I am ‘rusty in the head’, I made the same mistakes when approaching the ball. I have to force myself so that next time it won’t be like that."
Despite the setback, Swiatek's tone was not too downbeat. She will play alternate Daria Kasatkina in the final match of the round-robin stage to try to qualify for the semifinal after Jessica Pegula withdrew with an injury, and the 23-year-old does not think the tournament is over for her.
"Despite this defeat, I will continue playing and I will be able to fully concentrate on the next match. I don’t feel like this tournament is over for me."
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