 "Iga Swiatek celebrates after winning the 2024 French Open. This was her fifth Grand Slam title and fourth major win at Roland Garros. AP")
Before the French Open final on Saturday, Iga Swiatek was compared with her idol Rafael Nadal for their record on clay, and more specifically at Roland Garros. On the face of it, it is a ludicrous comparison. The Spaniard has triumphed in Paris a staggering 14 times and has a 112-4 win-loss record.
She agreed that the comparisons were far-fetched, having already shut down the moniker ‘Queen of Clay’ before the tournament began for being premature.
“We’ll see in 14 years if the journey is similar. That’s obviously really nice for me. I would never expect anybody to compare me to Rafa because for me he’s above everybody, and he’s a total legend,” she said after beating Coco Gauff in the semi-final.
“We’ll see in couple of years, but I’m proud of myself that I’m playing consistently here and that I’m mentioned in the same sentence as Rafa. That’s cool,” she added.
Except the World No. 1 is not dissuading the comparisons with her actions. On Saturday she romped to her third consecutive Roland Garros title and fourth in five years. The Pole has won 31 of her last 32 matches at Roland Garros, including 21 in a row, and is 35-2 overall.
She started slowly, had an errant couple of games to be broken, and yet finished in 68 minutes to beat Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-1.
With the demolition, Swiatek put herself in illustrious company.
She joins Monica Seles and Justine Henin in winning the French Open three years in a row in the Open Era. Players to have won the French Open at least four times include Chris Evert (7), Steffi Graf (6), Swiatek and Henin (4). She and Serena Williams are the only players to have done a treble of Madrid-Rome-French Open.
“Trying to build a Nadal-like legacy here,” said John McEnroe on American network NBC. “So far, so good.”
At 23, Swiatek has won the same number of French Open titles as Nadal had at the same age. She has a better win-loss percentage on terre battue of Roland Garros than Nadal had at this point in his career.
Her last defeat came against Maria Sakkari in the quarter-finals of the 2021 edition. Since then, it has been 21-0. During this run, she dropped just three sets and registered 10 bagels (6-0 set wins).
Is Iga Swiatek invincible on Roland Garros? This appears to be the case. Still, she came within one point of going out in the second round to former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka, who was playing on her least successful surface. Osaka had Swiatek on the ropes at 5-2 and down match point. The Pole, somehow, won five games in a row to avoid an upset .
So close was she to defeat that Swiatek needed a release in the gym afterward.
“I honestly thought that I’m going to be out of the tournament,” Swiatek recalled after the third round.
“Even though I felt something on court, it kind of hit me after. I was happy that I won, but I still felt like I was really on the edge. So, yeah, I just cried.”
The escape act only fuelled her resolve.
“For sure it gives me the feeling that I should always believe in myself, that I can find my tennis even if I’m in big trouble, you know and with this tennis, fight back,” said Swiatek. “It gives me confidence.”
Except for coming close to the exit door against Osaka, it was complete annihilation from Swiatek these two weeks.
Sample this. Against Osaka, Swiatek lost 17 games. Against the remaining six players, she dropped just 20. One more. With the Japanese player across the net, Swiatek faced nine break points - same as she did in the rest of the tournament.
She conceded a mere 11 games from the fourth round onwards — the joint-fewest en route to winning a women’s major in the Open era.
“To play you here is the toughest challenge in the sport,” said Paolini to Swiatek during the trophy ceremony.
“As always, she played at a tough level,” said Gauff after losing 6-2, 6-4 to Swiatek.
“She’s just too strong here,” said last year’s Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova after being walloped 6-0, 6-2.
For nearly two decades, these comparisons and choice of words were reserved for Nadal. Each year, the tournament began, it ticked down, and come the final Sunday, Nadal would take a bite of the trophy. Only, that honour has shifted from Coupe des Mousquetaires to Coupe Suzanne Lenglen.
If this indeed was the last of Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros. Instead of passing the mantle along to the heir apparent, unless Carlos Alcaraz stakes a claim, he’s done it to the heiress apparent.
Can the magic move on to Wimbledon?
Another comparison between Swiatek and Nadal is about their unwanted record outside of clay in the early years. Sure, Swiatek has triumphed at the 2022 US Open but her jitters on grass continue to taint her already glowing legacy.
Despite winning the junior title in 2018, Swiatek has not quite found her footing on the lush green surfaces of the All England Club, which hosts Wimbledon that begins 1 July. Her best result at Wimbledon is a run to the quarter-finals in 2023.
“I feel like every year it’s easier for me to adapt to grass,” Swiatek said. “I just need to continue the work that I’ve been doing. I think the biggest progress I can make on grass right now is using my serves better, but also I don’t expect a lot. Overall, tennis is different on grass. I’ll just see and I’ll work hard to play better there.”
Surely, Swiatek, who has become sublime with her movement on clay, can translate that to the grass as well which needs softer steps. Once she figures that out, she can add to her dominance at Wimbledon as well.
Worth remembering that Nadal was also considered a one-trick pony. It was only after the Spaniard won his fourth Roland Garros title that he clinched his maiden Wimbledon trophy.
Swiatek now has four Roland Garros titles. Is the time ripe for a coronation at Wimbledon?
Tanuj Lakhina wishes there were more hours in the day for sports to be played and watched.