“Pretty proud of the way I adapted to all challenges that I had to face” – Iga Swiatek on her reign as the World No. 1 after Indian Wells victory

Iga Swiatek won her trophy Indian Wells trophy by convincingly defeating Maria Sakkari in the women's singles final.

Swiatek ended Sakkari's challenge in an hour and nine minutes by dishing out a bagel in the process and laid her hands on the women's singles trophy at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden

The opening set between Swiatek and Sakkari witnessed a close fight as the Pole broke Sakkari in the second game but the latter returned the favor in the fifth game. Swiatek, however, secured the set in the tenth game with one more break of her opponent's serve.

The top seed then didn't look back and ran away with the second set in 25 minutes to close the match 6-4, 6-0, and lifted her eighth WTA 1000 trophy.

She notably became the World No. 1 for the first time on April 4, 2022, a week after winning her first title at Indian Wells. She has accumulated a staggering 95 weeks as the top-ranked woman in tennis since then.

During Iga Swiatek's post-match press conference, a journalist asked her to reflect on the journey she has covered since winning the Indian Wells tournament in 2022. The Pole replied by saying that she was proud of how she adapted to all the challenges like feeling comfortable by being No. 1 and being other players' target.

"I'm pretty proud of the way I adapted to all these challenges that I had to face, first becoming World No. 1, then actually feeling comfortable with it and using it on court and being the target of many players that wanted to beat particularly me. Then starting next season as World No. 1," Swiatek said.

"So I'm really proud of how I handled everything. It's not like it just happens and then it's done. You have many things, you know, that you have to face during one season. So, I'm just pretty proud," she added.

Iga Swiatek: "There are going to be ups and downs, so I don't expect I'm always going to feel comfortable with pressure"

Iga Swiatek also suggested that she would inevitably experience highs and lows and the expectations of trying to hold the pole position in the WTA singles rankings might unsettle her in the future.

"There are going to be ups and downs still, so I don't expect I'm always going to feel comfortable with pressure. Sometimes it hits harder; sometimes it doesn't hit at all," she said during the same presser.

The World No. 1 continued: