"Long journey" - Swiatek after finally playing with Nadal

Iga Swiatek got a chance to play with Rafael Nadal at the US Open, something that she dreamed about since she was a kid.

Swiatek grew up with Nadal being her favourite player and she took a lot of inspiration from him over the years. Now they're both grand slam champions and they teamed up for some doubles action in New York to benefit the victims of the war in Ukraine.

It's a cause dear to Swiatek's heart so it made the occasion even more special. She talked about it in a recent interview saying:

"It was pretty amazing. We already played singles a couple of years ago at Roland Garros, which was a birthday gift from my team actually."

And continued:

"It was pretty amazing being on the same side of the court playing doubles, and especially for such a great cause—being able to use our voices together to help people is pretty amazing. It was kind of a moment where I stopped for a little bit and thought about what a long journey it has been to get here, and getting to do that is really a dream come true."