"I'm not going to come to Melbourne and think about it every day": Career Grand Slam not a thought to Iga Swiatek ahead of Australian Open

Iga Swiatek heads into her latest Grand Slam title tilt at the Australian Open in a reflective mood. 2025 was an interesting season for Swiatek who lost her Queen of Clay mantle but she gained a new one as she finally conquered grass.

A surface that has long plagued her since her junior days, she managed to thrash Amanda Anisimova in a humbling win 6-0, 6-0 in the Wimbledon final before finishing the year as World No.2. Something that she is proud of despite obviously chasing the World No.1 which is currently held by imperious queen Aryna Sabalenka.

But the fact that multiple players in the top higher echelons of the game could feasibly hold top spot is something that Swiatek sees as a strength and that it means tight matches and great rivalries. As well as that overall this means that every player is getting better in due time.

“I think finishing as No 2 is a great achievement,” Swiatek said in an interview with CLAY. “I think the level we’re all at got more equal. I think you could see that, especially during the WTA finals, basically, any of us could win this tournament, we really played a lot of tight matches.

“There are some players that obviously prefer some conditions or others who feel better in this or that part of the season…but I think overall we all are getting better in a really fast way.

But this also falls on the sword of the fact that feats that were previously very much benchmarked are now breakable and for a player like Swiatek, she no longer feels like she is special compared to other players as everyone is evolving.

“If I would serve, like, 185 kilometres per hour three years ago, I think it would be a game changer, and it would be amazing, but now (that) I actually learned to do that, I realised that girls are serving 195. It’s obviously not only about the speed. It is just an example, but I think tennis is evolving and we’re all presenting a pretty good level now.”

On the season and also the potential of a Career Grand Slam which she would accrue if she finally wins the Australian Open next month it is not something really on her mind. She said that it isn't something she goes into Melbourne and thinks about and that she is focusing on just making the new season the best as possible.

Albeit she did add as a caveat that it would be a dream come true realistically to hold that honour and so she does have it somewhere locked away that it could be a possibility.

“The season was challenging, but, but I’m super proud of it,” she said. “But I am also happy that it’s done, because I played a lot of matches this year. And the schedule was packed.”

“I don’t set goals like that,” she said. “Obviously it’s something that I dream of and something that I want to happen one day but I’m not going to come to Melbourne and think about it every day.

“I know that there’s seven matches to win and the Grand Slams are two weeks, a lot can happen. So I’m really going to just take it step by step. Just focusing on the pre-season well is the key, and then I’ll see. But for sure, it would be a dream come true.”