Martina Navratilova believes that Barbora Krejcikova and Elena Rybakina beating Iga Swiatek increased the confidence of many players facing her.
For much of last year, Swiatek seemed rather unbeatable and there was a sense that many players folded even before stepping out of the court. You could sense the desperation when players played her and it wasn't until recently that she started to look vulnerable according to Navratilova who spoke to the Tennis Channel.
The way Swiatek imposed herself on the game, there was a clear No. 1. We got a true champion here, not just somebody that got there by default because Iga really earned that position.
Wins by Rybakina and Krejcikova over Swiatek seemingly increased the confidence of other players when facing the Pole. There seems to be less respect for her which made her tennis look more vulnerable than usual which wasn't the case last year.
But she's had a few hiccups this year, and it maybe hasn't gone as well as she would've liked.
It didn't just happen this year with Rybakina and Krejcikova but earlier last year. She was beaten in Poland by Garcia which shocked many as it was on clay and in her native country. Then she lost a couple of times in the next few months too including the WTA Finals.
The players feel that. It's that locker room confidence they get when they see other players beating Iga or giving her trouble, they think, 'Why not me?' So now it's going to be difficult for her.
Her good friend Evert explained earlier that despite these recent struggles, Swiatek was still the best player in the world and the one to beat especially with clay coming up. She dominated on that surface last year losing only one match (to Garcia at the Warsaw Open). It's going to be tricky beating her.
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