"Sometimes you feel like you need to perform better": Swiatek admits pressure comes with endorsements and brand deals

Friday, 18 August 2023 at 21:30

Iga Swiatek acknowledged the pressure she has felt regarding sponsorship deals, although she admits it was more pronounced when she was younger.

The World No. 1 continues to advance in the Western & Southern Open, reaching her fifth semifinal in WTA 1000 tournaments this year out of six participations. She only missed out on the Rome Open, where she retired in the quarterfinals against Elena Rybakina with a score of 6-2, 6-7(3), 2-2.

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Swiatek spoke at a press conference during the Cincinnati Open about the pressure she has experienced throughout her career due to the contracts she has with sponsors and the expectations they generate for her to achieve good results:

“People often, they don't know that we actually have to work on that as well. I remember, you know, signing my first sponsorship deals in, like, 2019 and 2020 and how much pressure it put on my shoulders,” 4-time Grand Slam champion.

“Even people kind of close to me sometimes, my family, they thought that it's going to, I don't know, give me wings and, like, I'm gonna be just proud and play my best game you know. But sometimes you feel like you need to perform better because they believe in you and you're representing them.”

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“So I'm just really happy that I have these companies behind my back and they are believing in me. I would say it doesn't have a bad influence on me. It did before when I was younger and I just didn't understand a lot of stuff, but I really worked hard to change that and now it's just great,” Swiatek added.

This week, Swiatek defeated Danielle Collins, Zheng Qinwen, and the recent Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, whom she defeated on Friday, August 18th, with a score of 7-6(3), 6-1.

In the semifinals, the 4-time Grand Slam champion will face the winner of the match between Coco Gauff and qualifier Jasmine Paolini.

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Iga Swiatek after beating Marketa Vondrousova: “I’m really happy with my performance. At the beginning, it wasn’t easy to adjust to her spin bc she a lefty. She really used that & her experience, but I really wanted to be determined & fight for every ball”

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4:52 PM · Aug 18, 2023

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Cristhián AvilaTennis Journalist

Cristhián Ávila is a tennis journalist based in Santiago, Chile, and has been part of the TennisUpToDate team since early 2023. He covers the ATP and WTA Tours as well as all four Grand Slams, producing breaking news, match reports, analysis, and regular liveblogs from major tournaments.

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