Former world No 2 warns ‘you always need to count on Iga Swiatek’ at French Open

Oli Dickson Jefford 28 May 2025 1:44 PM

Iga Swiatek and Alex Corretja.

Iga Swiatek’s leading rivals have been warned that she has “more experience than anyone else” at Roland Garros as she searches for her fifth French Open title.

Only Chris Evert and Steffi Graf have more French Open women’s singles titles in the Open Era than Swiatek, who defeated Jasmine Paolini to win her fourth title in 2024.

The Pole has won three consecutive titles at Roland Garros and has claimed the title four times in the space of five years, with just two defeats to her name at the tournament.

However, Swiatek heads into her title defence having not reached a WTA-level final since beating Paolini twelve months ago.

The 23-year-old has fallen to world No 5 in the WTA Rankings, her lowest ranking in over three years, and all eyes are on whether she can rediscover her best form at her most successful tournament.

Swiatek’s form has been scrutinised in recent months, though she has received the backing of former world No 2 Alex Corretja, a two-time finalist in Paris.

Speaking ahead of Roland Garros, TNT Sports pundit Corretja claimed that Swiatek was struggling to “find the balance” with a new aggressive mindset – though warned she was still a significant threat.

French Open News

Why Novak Djokovic’s next French Open opponent Corentin Moutet is a controversial figure

John McEnroe offers intriguing take as he answers Carlos Alcaraz question

He said: “Knowing Iga, I think expectations should be as high as she could – and that means trying to win again.

“When you enter Roland Garros, you have a feeling, like it’s different from the other events. Iga, you always need to count on her. She knows the game, she knows the opponents.

“For me, the thing is she’s been trying to improve her game and be a bit more aggressive, similar to what happened with Simona Halep.

“I think what happens is that now she is still finding her balance to see if she can be more aggressive, or if she doesn’t need to be that aggressive.

“This is a period that maybe you feel a bit lost, but I think if she finds herself, the way she is, because she’s very solid and very consistent, I don’t see it that easy to beat Iga.

“She has more experience than anyone else on those courts, so you always need to count on Iga, for sure. We can’t just let her away because she hasn’t played her best tennis in the last few weeks or few months.”

Swiatek started her title defence with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Rebecca Sramkova in round one, rallying from a break down in the second set to claim a 22nd consecutive match win at the tournament.

However, things do not get any easier for the 23-year-old, who will take on fellow Grand Slam champion and world No 41 Emma Raducanu in the second round on Wednesday.

The Pole has been drawn in the same quarter of the draw as fourth seed Paolini, and in the same half as world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Watch every match of Roland-Garros live and exclusive on TNT Sports and discovery+