Iga Swiatek opens up about being ashamed of crying on court, breaking out of the athlete stereotype, and more

Iga Swiatek is no stranger to showing her emotions on court, having openly broken down in tears on multiple occasions in the past. Most fans see it as a sign of how much the World No. 1 wants to win, while some - a very small number - see it as a sign of weakness.

Swiatek herself, however, couldn't care less about all that. Speaking in a column she recently wrote for The Players' Tribune, the Pole opened up about how difficult her 2021 season was, fresh off winning the French Open title the previous year as a teenager.

Coming into the year wanting to prove herself to everyone who thought she had won her maiden Grand Slam by fluke, Swiatek burdened herself with too much pressure -- an ordeal she described as "mentally awful."

"I didn’t think I proved myself winning Roland Garros for the first time. I felt like it kind of happened by mistake, like I was in the right place at the right time, I played well, and it somehow happened. So going into the 2021 season, I felt like, Okay, now I have to prove myself.

"And it was mentally awful for me at first. I was also working with a big sponsor for the first time, and I felt this pressure, like if I didn’t achieve something, I’d be this huge disappointment," Iga Swiatek wrote.

When the Tokyo Olympics came around in July, the three-time Grand Slam champion was seeded sixth and was expected to go deep. Shockingly, however, she lost in straight sets to Paula Badosa in the second round and broke down in tears after the match.

Recalling the moment, Swiatek admitted that she felt like people were "judging" her for doing so.

"Things turned around with the Australian Open, but then my biggest struggle happened that summer during the Tokyo Olympics," Iga Swiatek recalled. "I cried on the court after I lost in straight sets, and I felt like people were judging me a little bit."

Although she had a good end to the year, qualifying for the WTA Finals, the Pole could not get out of the group stage and broke down in tears again after finishing last. This time, Iga Swiatek had stronger feelings about her emotional outburst, disclosing that she was "ashamed" of herself and thought of her actions as not befitting that of a champion.

"Then, in Guadalajara, I was exhausted mentally and physically, and I didn’t really know what to do. I just felt helpless on the court, and I cried again. I was worried how people would see me," Iga Swiatek said. "I was ashamed that I did that and thought it was not the way a champion should be."

But the 21-year-old eventually broke out of that sort of stereotypic thinking, thanks mainly to Ashleigh Barty. World No. 1 at the time, Barty broke all norms by retiring just days after winning the 2022 Australian Open at the age of 25.

Seeing the Aussie, someone whom she idolized, go about her life in a manner that did not subscribe to tradition, Swiatek learnt the lesson herself as well, realizing that she did not have to "give a s**t" about what others think of her.

"There are these ideas that we have in ourselves as players that come from our parents and tennis and media and all this about how an athlete should be. But when I saw Ash, I was like, Wow, you can choose to do this differently.

"While you’re on this journey, striving for excellence, you can sometimes say, “Okay, that’s enough.” You’re in control, the whole way. No one else is driving the car. And sometimes the best solution is not giving a s**t, honestly," Iga Swiatek wrote.

Giving myself that freedom to not care what people think" - Iga Swiatek on the secret to her recent success

2023 United Cup Practice Sessions

Iga Swiatek labeled giving herself the "freedom" to not care about what others thought of her as the "secret" to her recent success. Whether it be winning two Grand Slams in 2022 or reaching the World No. 1 spot and then keeping hold of it, the Pole attributes that line of thought to what made her achievements possible.

"If there is some secret to my success in the last year, it’s giving myself that freedom to not care what people think. That’s what led me to winning another Grand Slam and the third one. That’s what led me to No. 1. Letting go. When I have moments now where I feel a little bit insecure, that’s what I remind myself of," Iga Swiatek revealed.