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Polish tennis ace eyes more success after 'very good' 2021: coach

01.12.2021 19:00
Rising Polish tennis star Iga Świątek has played "better than expected" this year and aims for more success in 2022, her coach has said. 
Polish tennis player Iga Świątek.
Polish tennis player Iga Świątek.PAP/EFE Francisco Guasco

Świątek won two titles in 2021, in Adelaide and Rome, as well as climbing up the WTA rankings and reaching the last 16 in each of the year's four Grand Slam tournaments, Piotr Sierzputowski told reporters.  

No other female player performed as consistently in the Grand Slams this year, according to Sierzputowski.

"It was a really good season, and all goals were achieved," Sierzputowski said, as quoted by Polish state news agency PAP. 

"Iga made even bigger progress than we expected, and hopefully future seasons will be even better," he added.

"The kind of stability she showed this year is really hard to attain at this level," Sierzputowski told a news conference.

"The differences between top players are minimal, which means that those ranked fourth and 50th are quite similar in ability," he estimated.

He revealed that Świątek's goals for 2022 "will be of a different order, appropriate for a top-10 player."

"We'll be looking to progress further in tournaments, hit peak form, rather than being consistent throughout the year," Sierzputowski said.

Iga Świątek i trener tenisistki Piotr Sierzputowski Iga Świątek and Piotr Sierzputowski. Photo: Polish Radio

The 20-year-old Świątek, who is ending 2021 as world No. 9, is preparing for the new season at home, with a brief trip to an exhibition tournament in South Africa, Sierzputowski said.

He told the media that Świątek's plans for 2022 included events in Adelaide and Sydney in January, followed by the year's first Grand Slam tournament, the Australian Open, in Melbourne.    

Świątek shot to global fame last year after she won the French Open, becoming the first Pole to lift a Grand Slam singles trophy.

(pm/gs)

Source: PAP