"Iga Swiatek suffocates her opponents" says Fabrice Santoro

Fabrice Santoro has dubbed newly-crowned WTA number one Iga Swiatek as unique in her all-around capabilities on the court.

The Pole recently became just the fourth woman to complete the elusive ‘Sunshine Double’ of winning Indian Wells and Miami back-to-back before topping the women’s rankings immediately after. She is also the first woman to win the first three WTA 1000 level events of a season consecutively, just one thing that makes Swiatek special in the eyes of Santoro.

He told L’Equipe:

“In my opinion, Swiatek is the only player today capable of winning a match by attacking or defending. In general, it is she who puts pressure on her opponents, who attacks. [She attacks with] the service, on return of the second serve."

He further said:

“It feels like her opponents are running out of oxygen because it’s going too fast. But she is also able to defend because she has exceptional physical qualities.”