Swiatek 'hungry for more' after Olympics bronze

By Sports Desk August 06, 2024

Iga Swiatek says she is "hungry for more" after claiming the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics.

Swiatek has been a dominant force at Roland-Garros, winning four of the last five French Opens, including this year's, after cruising past Jasmine Paolini.

The Pole was the favourite going into the Games too, and looked set to make good on that promise as she picked up where she left off on the clay court.

However, she suffered a shock straight-sets defeat to eventual gold-medallist Zheng Qinwen in the semi-finals, though she recovered to beat Anna-Karolina Schmiedlova in the bronze-medal match to claim Poland's first-ever tennis medal at the Olympics.

Reflecting on her time in Paris, Swiatek acknowledged the rollercoaster of emotions that came with the tournament and how much she has progressed since competing in Tokyo three years ago.

"After a couple of days, I feel ready to sum up this chapter... Joy, happiness, sadness, disappointment, satisfaction, hunger for more, pride and so many other emotions, thoughts... I'm still figuring it out, and I feel how valuable this experience was to me," Swiatek said in a post on social media.

"Maybe in the future, I will assess two weeks with a bigger picture and better perspective, but I already see a lot. First of all, how much progress I've made since Tokyo. How much I can do, how many opportunities I have to become a better player and human.

"But what's most important is how much I've experienced here. It was a special time that wouldn't be possible without my team and my family. Thank you for what you did for me.

"Zheng Qinwen, Donna Vekic, huge congrats to you! I'm grateful I could share the Olympic podium with you two."

Swiatek recently pulled out of the Canadian Open, but she will be back on the WTA Tour next week to compete in Cincinnati as she prepares for the US Open at the end of the month.

The 23-year-old, who is targeting her second grand slam win in New York, also expressed her pride at seeing tennis take the spotlight in Paris.

"When I'm thinking about the Olympics and tennis, I'm so proud how our sport was pictured in Paris.

"So many amazing matches, inspirational stories, amazing pictures from the opening ceremony where tennis players had a special place.

"We should appreciate that tennis plays such an important role in the world of sports. I'm happy that my story is part of it."

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    Aryna Sabalenka continued her dominance over Zheng Qinwen with victory in her first match of the season-ending WTA Finals in Riyadh. 

    Sabalenka, who entered the tournament as the new world number one, emerged a 6-3 6-4 victor in just under an hour and a half in Saudi Arabia. 

    The Belarusian's triumph saw her claim a 10th win against a top 10 opponent in 2024, surpassing Iga Swiatek (nine), who is in action against Barbora Krejcikova on Sunday. 

    Sabalenka also improved her record to 5-0 against the Olympic champion, though acknowledged the difficulties she faced.

    "I’m super happy with the win, especially against Qinwen," Sabalenka said.

    “It’s always tough matches, tough battles against her, and I'm really, I’m really glad I was able to finish this match in straight sets.”

    Having won the Australian Open and US Open this season, Sabalenka said it is her dream to claim a maiden WTA Finals crown. 

    "It would mean everything to me. I really worked hard the past years since the very beginning of my career," the 26-year-old said.

    "I really hope I'll be able to hold this beautiful trophy one day."

    In Saturday's other match, Jasmine Paolini marked her WTA Finals debut with a 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 win over Elena Rybakina.

    Paolini became the first Italian to register 40 wins during a single season at WTA events since Sara Errani, who managed 48 Tour-level victories in 2015.

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    Zverev recovered from failing to serve out the match at 5-4 in the second set, resisting a late fightback from Rune to earn a 6-3 7-6 (7-4) victory in the French capital. 

    The German, who hit 25 winners and won 84% of his first-serve points, also climbed above Carlos Alcaraz in the ATP rankings after securing his 65th win of the season. 

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    Zverev will face either home favourite Ugo Humbert or former champion Karen Khachanov in Sunday's showpiece.

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    Zverev's triumph saw him reach a 12th ATP Masters final. Since the format's inception in 1990, the German surpassed Boris Becker (11) for the seventh-most in tournament history.

    It was also his 65th win of the season, equalling Jannik Sinner (65) for the most ATP match victories of any player so far this year. 

  • Sabalenka determined to 'do everything I can' to remain world number one ahead of Swiatek Sabalenka determined to 'do everything I can' to remain world number one ahead of Swiatek

    Aryna Sabalenka says she will "do everything I can" to end the year as world number one for the first time in her career.

    The winner of this season's Australian Open and US Open, Sabalenka sits top of the WTA summit ahead of Iga Swiatek, with the pair battling it out to be there come the conclusion of the WTA Finals in Riyadh.

    Sabalenka, who has also triumphed in Cincinnati and Wuhan this term, will hold onto top spot by winning all three of her group-stage matches or reaching the final of the event.

    The 26-year-old was in a similar position last season when she arrived at the WTA Finals in Cancun, but was subsequently displaced by Swiatek.

    And she is desperate not to miss out this time around.

    "That's definitely one of the goals," she said. "I've always been saying that, for me, it's about finishing the year as the world number one. I'll do everything I can to finish the year as world number one.

    "Any time we come to the tournament, we want to win. That's the first goal. I'm trying to be focused on the first part. Then, if I am able to finish the year as number one, it'll be amazing, and I'll be super happy."

    Meanwhile, reigning champion Swiatek must successfully defend the WTA Finals crown - and land her sixth silverware of the campaign - if she is to enter 2025 as world number one.

    Following an impressive start to the season, the French Open champion has tailed off and skipped the recent Asian swing due to fatigue, but is determined to seal her return to the summit.

    "Obviously, we're both fighting for this spot," she said. "It's been us basically, over the past few years.

    "I'm in the tournament. I want to play my best and win. I'm going to focus on my first match and do everything step by step.

    "She's a great player. She also deserves to be number one. For sure, I'm going to fight for me to be in that place."

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