Iga Swiatek has ‘some questions to answer’ ahead of French Open campaign, according to former No 1
Iga Swiątek has ‘some questions to answer’ ahead of her French Open campaign, according to Rennae Stubbs, after a disappointing 2026 season.
The Pole has compiled a 14-8 win-loss record this year and is yet to reach a semi-final at any event.
Even more concerningly, two of her last three defeats have come after winning the opening set.
At the third round of the Madrid Open, Swiatek was forced to retire while trailing 6-7(4), 6-2, 0-3 against American Ann Li due to suspected food poisoning and extreme heat.
The former world No 1 will next compete at the Italian Open, which takes place from May 5–16, with Caty McNally set to be her opening opponent.
Seeds Emma Navarro, Naomi Osaka, Jessica Pegula, and Karolina Muchova are all potential opponents before the semi-finals.
Elena Rybakina and Elina Svitolina are projected to await the Pole in the last four, while Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff headline the opposite half of the draw.
Given the difficult draw and Swiatek’s lack of recent success on court, former world No 1 Stubbs has highlighted the importance of the Rome event ahead of the French Open.
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“I mean listen, Iga has got some questions to answer, that’s for sure,” Stubbs said on her podcast.
“She loves Rome. She once beat a very good player by the name of Karolina Pliskova 6-0, 6-0 in a final there. And I think this is going to be a massive emotional test for her.
“Because if she does not do well at this tournament, you start to wonder how much disappointment she can handle from not winning and not performing well on her best surface.
“And you know, the coaching changes and the mentality — Daria [Abramowicz] wasn’t in Madrid — how’s she going to react if Daria is in Rome? Then people are going to start wondering about this and that, and how the new coaching setup is working out.
“And maybe it’s not the coach, maybe it’s Iga.”
As Stubbs mentioned, Swiatek split with her long-time coach, Abramowicz, after nearly two years working together, shortly after her shock opening-round defeat to Magda Linette in Miami.
Speculation over a replacement was quickly ended when she announced that Francisco Roig — who coached Rafael Nadal for nearly two decades — would take over the role.
Swiatek is a three-time champion at the Italian Open (2021, 2022, and 2024), as well as a four-time winner of the French Open (2020, 2022, 2023, and 2024).
“I feel like this week is going to be incredibly tough for her because if she does not win the tournament, or at least reach the final and play well, I think she’s going to be really stressed heading into the French Open.
“Look, we know what she did at Wimbledon. She knows she’s capable of doing that now, but this is only going to get harder because she’s not the type of player who just goes ‘meh’.
“She’s not like an [Elena] Rybakina who can have two or three bad weeks and then come back and blow everybody off the court.
“So I think there are a lot of question marks surrounding Iga. Certainly with Coco [Gauff], [Aryna] Sabalenka hasn’t proven herself on clay yet.
“So there are a lot of questions to be answered heading into the French Open, the second Slam of the year. And I think the biggest question is: how is Iga going to perform going into the French Open? It’s a big ask.”
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