Former World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki questions Iga Swiatek’s mindset ahead of French Open

With the French Open approaching, Iga Swiatek is chasing a place in history. The soon to be 24-year-old is aiming for a fourth consecutive Roland Garros title, something no woman has done in the Open Era. Despite not reaching a final this year, her name still sits near the top of the list of contenders.

To former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki, Swiatek’s game is still intact but she needs to manage her mindset. “For her it’s all about mentality,” Wozniacki said during a media call promoting TNT’s Roland-Garros coverage. “If she can stay loose, if she can stay relaxed, if she can stay happy, her game comes together.”

Wozniacki added that Swiatek’s past success could be either a burden or a weapon. “Is she going to feel a ton of pressure and feel tight because she’s won there so many times, or is she going to go in there and say ‘I’ve won here so many times I can relax and enjoy, because this is my surface and everyone else should be afraid of me,'” she explained.

Swiatek has acknowledged she’s been battling her own expectations. “Lately, when I made some mistakes on the court, I focused on them a little bit too much,” she said. “I needed to realize that by myself, even though my team kind of told me that it’s happening.”

Swiatek will aim for another title at Roland Garros (Getty Images)

She added that perfectionism has been hard to shake. “I don’t think it’s possible [to not be] a perfectionist, but for sure there are ways to control it a bit more,” she said. Her early loss in Rome to Danielle Collins has only fueled questions about her confidence heading into Paris.

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Swiatek’s difficult draw

In that sense, her path won’t be easy. Swiatek opens against Rebecca Sramkova on Sunday. However, she is projected encounters with past Grand Slam champions such as Emma Raducanu, Jelena Ostapenko, or Elena Rybakina.

She is projected to face top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals, with a potential clash against Coco Gauff in the final. While the path looks difficult, if there’s a tournament where Swiatek can recover, it’s Roland Garros.