"I think that such a message should have been made much earlier": Swiatek believes WTA should've done more in Potapova situation

Iga Swiatek was not a fan of Anastasia Potapova wearing a Russian jersey before her tennis match against Jessica Pegula which she ultimately lost.

Russian and Belarussian players were allowed to compete on the tennis circuit but not under the flags of their countries. The sport didn't want its platform used for any political messages after the Invasion of Ukraine and generally, players followed the rules. Potapova made a bold move by wearing a Russian tennis journey which many perceived as a political statement.

Swiatek, who wears a small Ukraine pin on her hat since the start of the Invasion, spoke out against it:

"To be honest, I was surprised because I thought she realized that she shouldn't, even if she's a fan of the team, show her views at times like this. I didn't know what the WTA would do or what the consequences would be."

She continued:

"I talked to the WTA and in a sense I learned that there will probably be fewer of these situations, because they will explain to other players that you can't promote any Russian teams these days, which calmed me down a bit."

And once more:

"On the other hand, I think that such a message should have been made much earlier. At the beginning of the war, there was a lot of chaos in the locker room. It was not known how to approach all this. This causes such situations."