Iga Swiatek says press conferences are "part of the job", reveals she gets "too overwhelmed to even say hi" to idol Rafael Nadal

Defending Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek admitted that taking part in press conferences after a defeat was not "the most enjoyable thing to do", but insisted that carrying out media duties was part and parcel of the job.

Swiatek's comments come just two days after Naomi Osaka caused a storm by announcing that she would be boycotting all press conferences at Roland Garros 2021.

Osaka claimed press conferences can be detrimental to the mental health of players after tough losses, and declared that she was willing to accept whatever fine was imposed on her for the decision.

When asked to weigh in on the matter during her pre-tournament press conference, Iga Swiatek said interacting with the media did not impact her mental health.

"I don't (think that it is mentally affecting). I personally feel that this is part of the job," Swiatek said. "And of course, you know, talking to press after we lost, it's not the most enjoyable thing to do. But it's good to find the balance and find the distance to all of that."

Swiatek also said it was important to have a support structure in place to shield the players from "hate".

"You know, as soon as I don't have so many media obligations, I'm okay with it, but I think it's just important to have people around you who are going to be that kind of wall that's gonna separate you from, I don't know, hate or something," the Pole said.

"It may be hard, but I feel like with proper kind of support and with distance and, you know, with balance it's, you know, part of the job."

When asked if she has had a discussion with Rafael Nadal about defending the Roland Garros trophy, Iga Swiatek said she gets too overwhelmed to talk to her idol.

🤩This is me and Rafa just casually showing his quads...Just kidding. You're so kind @RafaelNadal, thank you for taking the time before the match. 🤩Oto ja, Rafa i jego udo...A poważnie, dziękuję życzliwość, klasę i czas poświęcony przed meczem na zrobienie sobie tego zdjęcia. pic.twitter.com/smqsDV0qQt

— Iga Świątek (@iga_swiatek) May 17, 2021

"No, not yet," Swiatek said. "Maybe we're gonna have a chance to do that later, but we just had like a quick small talk last year, and yesterday he said 'hi' to me. For now I'm too overwhelmed to even say 'hi'. So, you know, I'm a big fan of his, and if I'm gonna have a chance to, you know, ask him some stuff and also learn from him, it would be great, but we are both busy, so I know it's gonna be hard to schedule that."

"It's kind of weird" - Iga Swiatek on her and Nadal celebrating their birthdays during Roland Garros

Iga Swiatek with her 2020 French Open title

Iga Swiatek's birthday is on 31 May, while Rafael Nadal's is on 3 June, meaning they both occur during Roland Garros. Coincidentally, both Swiatek and Nadal won the recent Italian Open after saving match points.

When quizzed about the matter, Iga Swiatek said she had given it some thought.

"Well, I thought about it, but I also think it's kind of weird," the Pole said. "I don't know. I don't know what to say, because it's some kind of superstition when you look at that stuff and try to compare each other. But, yeah, I know it's weird (smiling)."

😊 Fun, fun @rolandgarros pic.twitter.com/4lclvW7sOm

— Iga Świątek (@iga_swiatek) May 26, 2021