'Really important for me' - Iga Swiatek discusses the benefits of having a sports psychologist with her on the WTA tour

ByEurosport

Updated 01/06/2022 at 23:05 GMT

Iga Swiatek discusses with Eurosport's Barbara Schett in the Cube the benefits of having a sports psychologist with her on the WTA tour. The Pole says continually getting advice before and after matches has helped her improve mentally, but does no think every player will necessarily want the same amount of psychological assistance as she has.

Iga Swiatek says that she benefits greatly from having a psychologist with her on the tour and that the assistance helps her overcome self-doubt.

Swiatek has enjoyed a remarkable rise up the WTA rankings. She is already the world No. 1 aged 21, has a Grand Slam title to her name – the 2020 French Open - and is currently on a 33-match win streak.

The Pole will face Daria Kasatkina in the semi-finals at Roland-Garros on Thursday as she bids to reach her second final.

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She says her sports psychologist Daria Abramowicz plays a significant part in her overall development as a player.

“It’s pretty hard to know [how I’m developing psychologically] that because since my psychologist is travelling with me," she told Eurosport’s Barbara Schett in the Cube.

“We talk over lunch so it’s hard to say but it is always important for me, and I’m happy that I have a person that I can talk to and that when I have some doubts, I can really you know look for another opinion and a person who’s going to remind me sometimes where my strengths are.

“So I feel as though it all comes together and really clicks on court and that’s the most important thing for me.”

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Swiatek says it depends on the individual whether they feel they want a psychologist on the tour with them or not.

She added: “It depends on the player how they wanna work because for some players it’s okay to just have a few sessions a month.

“I, for example, felt like it’s pretty nice that my psychologist is travelling with me because it would be hard for me to trust somebody if somebody wouldn’t be here and wouldn’t see how I react after I lose, how I react after I win, and basically it’s easier when we got to know each other.

“It all depends, it’s not like everybody should do it the same way, everybody should think about their own path.”

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Swiatek tries to not focus too much on her remarkable winning streak as she bids to win the second Grand Slam of her career.

“I have to prove to myself the sky is the limit,” she said.

“This tournament is also tricky because it’s a Grand Slam. And the atmosphere is different, the pressure is a little bit higher.

“You always have some doubts, the way that you process it is the most important.

“I’m pretty happy how I have used these matches to have more confidence and to kind of play more fearlessly.

“I’m not always thinking about winning points and knowing I’ve already won so many points that you don’t have to defend anything.”

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