"It helped me because it kind of ruined the grass": Iga Swiatek hopes sweltering conditions continue ala Wimbledon

Iga Swiatek saw off Sara Bejlek 6-2, 6-3 today and now faces Magda Linette over Jelena Ostapenko thankfully for her in the next round at the French Open.

Swiatek lauded her opponent in victory and said that she had to work hard and still has facets of her game to improve under her current coach, Francisco Roig, at the French Open.

"Well, she was really good in defence and I had many opportunities to attack — sometimes even too many. When you attack most balls, of course you’re going to make more mistakes, because it’s easier to push the ball back than to add a lot of energy and try to open the court," said Swiatek post match.

"Sometimes I made mistakes on the high balls because the ball was jumping quite high. It’s not easy to judge whether you should go for it or stay back and wait for the next one. I think it was mostly because of her defence and the way she plays.

"That’s why I said the rhythm wasn’t obvious sometimes. From the same shots she could play really flat or totally the opposite, so it was pretty unpredictable. But I didn’t mind — I wanted to be flexible, adjust and still play my game.

"I had moments where the mistakes happened, but in the end I felt like I was the one controlling the game. It was up to me whether I finished the point or made a mistake, and in the important moments I was focused and patient enough to play solid tennis.

She also touched upon the conditions and how in reality it helped her similarly when she won Wimbledon so she perhaps prefers when the surface deteriorates.

"At Wimbledon it was actually quite warm at the beginning, and I feel like it helped me a lot because it kind of ruined the grass. I think for maybe six days it was around 30 to 34 degrees. Maybe also during the Olympics, because that was two months later.

"Usually the weather here is quite different, but it doesn’t matter because I feel like it’s going to change in the second part of the tournament. I guess this tournament is really about whoever can cope with both kinds of conditions."

She was also asked about the current state of women's tennis and said it depends on perception as well on both sides of ATP and WTA tennis. "Well, first of all, I feel like you should ask if it’s worse, not if it’s good. It’s good? Okay, you like it. Because before, when Ash retired, people were saying there wasn’t one player dominating and that the WTA was inconsistent. Now people like that there are many players who can win. So I guess it depends on who’s asking the question. I think it’s interesting for the fans because we can surprise you, but at the same time there is consistency. You can see that in the results of the top players, and that’s also good because fans can follow those players longer in tournaments.

"As for the ATP, what can I say? Jannik is so good, and Carlos is injured now, but both of them have been winning most of the tournaments. Their fans are probably really happy, and I am too because I love watching them play. But for sure it’s a bit predictable. Still, you never know what’s going to happen later on."

She also appeared in a commercial for On with Ben Shelton and Joao Fonseca and said that part of it was cut out and she actually had a script for the ad.

"Well, how do you rate them? No, but I think it’s super funny because there’s actually a story and a plot. This one was supposed to be funny. They cut the scene where I was judging my employees, which is a shame because I can judge pretty well.

"Overall, I think these kinds of ads attract a bit more attention. In Melbourne I was playing a waitress and I loved that. Sometimes it’s hard to act like someone you’re not, but usually they ask you to play somebody you can relate to, so it’s fun."