Great news for Iga Świątek before the US Open. The Pole can breathe a sigh of relief

Iga Świątek, as well as other Polish tennis players, are starting their competition at the US Open. The first match of the bronze medalist from Paris is scheduled for Tuesday, August 27. Earlier, Magda Linette, Magdalena Fręch and Maks Kaśnikowski will play their matches.

Iga Świątek under less pressure than last year

Just before the start of the last Grand Slam tournament of the year, the WTA updated the ranking. This time, Iga Świątek is in a much better situation than last year. Let us recall that the player from Raszyn was eliminated in the 1/8 finals by Jelena Ostapenko, and after the competition she lost the first place in the ranking.

At the press conference, Iga Świątek admitted that last year, her uncertain position in the ranking and defending her title put her under enormous pressure that she could not handle. Now, however, it is completely different.

– A year ago I felt like I had a lot to defend, like the leader position in the ranking, the points, and the title itself. I felt like I had a huge burden on my shoulders. This year is a bit different. I try to focus on what I should do to be at the best level possible. My expectations are not as high as they were a year ago. I plan to go step by step and not put too much pressure on myself – she admitted before the start of the competition.

Latest WTA Ranking: Iga Świątek Chasing a Legend

Iga Świątek can be calm about her ranking, as she has just started her 118th week of reigning in the WTA ranking. Thanks to this, she has become an independent tennis player in eighth place in the all-time ranking. In seventh place is Ashleigh Barty, who has been in the leader’s chair for 121 weeks.

Iga Świątek currently has 10695 points and has a 2679 “points” advantage over second placed Aryna Sabalenka (8016). Third is Coco Gauff (6743), who will defend the title she won last year. The next places in the Top 10 are occupied by Jelena Rybakina, Jasmine Paolini, Jessica Pegula, Qinwen Zheng, Barbora Krejcikova, Maria Sakkari and Jelena Ostapenko.

As for other Polish women, Magda Linette dropped two positions and is in 42nd place (1371), with Magdalena Fręch right behind her (1363).