"For me, it’s hard to know what’s going to happen in the next weeks" - Iga Swiatek returns to Roland Garros not as defending title as prize money protests prolong

For the first time since 2022, Iga Swiatek will not return to Roland Garros as the reigning champion. She lost in the semi-finals stage last year but was glowing in positivity after a much better run in the Rome Open which puts her in a good place ahead of the French Open.

She was very happy to be back at a place which she has had so much success at. “Yeah, I’m really happy to be back here," she told the media. "The preparations have honestly been like before any other tournament — we’re just practicing in a solid way and making time for recovery as well. But for sure, the conditions changed today, so from now on I feel like the practices will be a bit different than they were two days ago. It’s important to get the feeling of the court right now with the heat.”

The four-time champion does not feel any different from any other year coming back. “Honestly, no. I feel like I remember all these tournaments that I played here, no matter if I won or not. It all kind of comes up as one memory, I would say. I don’t particularly think about last year, so it doesn’t really matter.”

Swiatek was quick to confirm that she was taking part in the 15-minute media limit. “Yeah, I am also doing 15 minutes. I’m following the structure.” Players are requesting for prize money at Grand Slam s to go up to 22% of revenue earned, with it currently stuck at 15%.

The 24-year-old explained the objectives behind this initiative. “First of all, all of us have nothing against the media. We totally respect you guys, and we know how important our relationship is. But with the tournaments, I feel like we will do more when the tournaments do more for us — and not only for the top players, but also for the lower-ranked players and the whole structure. So personally, it’s nothing against you guys, but this is the decision we made and we will follow it.”

This was not the first thing she clapped back against. Back in February, she and world number one Aryna Sabalenka pulled out of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. This got a very damming verdict by the Tournament Director who was not at all pleased with the two players not turning up to the WTA 1000 tournament.

While there were threats of harsh penalties, Swiatek did not hear any of this. “I didn’t hear about the penalty suggestion, probably because it’s a bit ridiculous," she said. "We have the right to withdraw anytime we want, so I honestly don’t see the problem. If we’re not fit or we don’t feel like it’s the right time for us to play a tournament — are we slaves? We are allowed to decide. We already get zero ranking points — that’s a punishment.”

She was asked whether players would be willing to take stronger action to make their point. “That’s an interesting question," he noted. "For me, it’s hard to know what’s going to happen in the next weeks. There are many factors involved and it also depends on how the tournaments react. I don’t think doing something that isn’t constructive would make sense, but we want to push a bit more to get what we need and to get tournaments being more open to the conversations we need to have.”

This time last year, Swiatek was coming off the back of a third round appearance in the Rome Open. She was the reigning champion and was set to suffer a steep ranking drop before gaining those points back on grass.

“Last year my tournament in Rome was like a really cold shower," she commented. "I felt terrible on court there, so for sure this year, after a couple of good matches, there is a more positive vibe. It’s good to have some really solid matches behind you and start the tournament with that feeling. But every year and every tournament is a different story."

This year, a run to the semi-finals with a really dominant period in the midst of that run puts her in good stead. "I think I’ll take good experience from this year’s Rome and positive feedback after the matches. I also had the chance to play under pressure and get match rhythm, which is great compared to last year. But this is still a totally different tournament with different conditions, especially with the heat, so you need to stay humble and know you’ll need to fight for every match.”

It does not matter how dominant she is on court, there is an uncertainty over how she would feel for every tournament. “Honestly, I wouldn’t split these situations into ‘when I was dominating’ and ‘when I wasn’t dominating,’ because even when I was dominating, sometimes I felt good, sometimes really anxious, and sometimes I just went for it.

"For example, in 2023 I played the final in Madrid, withdrew in Rome, and then won here — but honestly, I never felt more anxious than in 2023. Every year is different. Last year, I felt like I needed to work more on the tennis side than the mental side, but I still felt a lot of pressure because everybody was looking at my clay-court results and judging.

"But in 2024, every day I just enjoyed myself. I didn’t really feel pressure from the outside. Maybe I was just really focused on myself and in my own bubble. Every year is different. No matter if you’re dominating or not, there are always different obstacles to face, and you just need to adjust to them.”