Swiatek Critiques the Grueling Tennis Schedule

Concerns Over Tennis Calendar

Iga Swiatek emphasized the burdensome nature of the tennis calendar during a press conference on Sunday, arguing that athletes shouldn’t feel compelled to participate in over 20 tournaments each year just to keep their rankings intact.

Balancing National Pride and Personal Goals

The former world number one, currently ranked fourth, expressed her frustration with being caught in a dilemma between national representation and personal career focus, particularly after she opted out of Poland’s Billie Jean King Cup qualifier in April. “The scheduling is incredibly intense. It’s excessive. There’s really no justification for competing in more than 20 tournaments annually,” Swiatek remarked, highlighting mental health challenges faced by players. “At times, we have to forgo the opportunity to represent our country to keep up with events like the WTA 500s, or we risk receiving zero ranking points.”

Quality Over Quantity

Previously, Swiatek has pointed out how the demanding tennis calendar affects players’ mental well-being, even noting a loss in February linked to insufficient preparation. “These obligations and the rules surrounding mandatory tournaments create undue pressure on us,” she stated. “I believe tennis would still attract viewers—perhaps even more—if we reduced the number of tournaments. The overall quality would improve.”

The exhaustive tennis schedule has been a significant issue in the lawsuit launched by the Professional Tennis Players’ Association against the sport’s governing bodies in March, which deemed it “unsustainable.” As the eighth seed at Wimbledon this year, Swiatek is set to compete against Polina Kudermetova in the opening round on Tuesday.

Despite her success on clay, where she has claimed four French Open titles, Swiatek is working to enhance her performance on grass—a surface she has historically struggled with. After reaching her first grass-court final at the Bad Homburg Open on Saturday and suffering a heartbreaking loss to top seed Jessica Pegula, she remains optimistic about her growth on this faster surface. “It’s not a drastic change. It’s not like a complete turnaround. I wouldn’t claim that everything is suddenly perfect, as it remains a challenging surface. However, every year it seems to get a bit easier to adapt, allowing more time to evolve as a player,” Swiatek concluded.