After a historic season, Iga Swiatek was officially and deservedly named the 2022 WTA Player of the Year.
Swiatek secured two Grand Slams in 2022: the French Open and the US Open. She now has three major titles to her name after triumphing at Roland Garros in 2020, overcoming Sofia Kenin in the final.
At the start of the year, the Pole reached the Australian Open semifinal. Swiatek recently said that moment was pivotal because it gave her confidence and belief that winning a hard-court Grand Slam was possible.
After losing to Jelena Ostapenko at the Dubai Championships, Swiatek went on an extraordinary 37-match winning streak, claiming titles at the Qatar Open, Indian Wells Open, Miami Open, Stuttgart Open, Italian Open, and French Open during that period.
Alize Cornet eventually broke the streak at Wimbledon, but Swiatek won the seventh and final title of her incredible year at the US Open. That triumph is also memorable for the 21-year-old being given tiramisu in the post-match press conference.
Swiatek progressed to the semifinal of the WTA Finals but lost to Aryna Sabalenka. The three-time Grand Slam champion admitted to being relieved her grueling season was over after that defeat so she could get some necessary rest.
In truth, Swiatek winning the WTA Player of the Year was unsurprising. There would have been much controversy had the Pole not secured the honor after clearly being the most dominant player throughout the season.
The other nominees were Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Ons Jabeur, Elena Rybakina, and Caroline Garcia. 18-year-old Gauff was nominated after reaching the French Open final and becoming the No. 1 doubles player earlier this season.
Pegula reached three Grand Slam quarterfinals during her consistent year, and Jabeur was the Wimbledon and US Open runner-up. They had great seasons, but Swiatek was undoubtedly the most outstanding player in 2022.
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