"I’m surprised Iga Swiatek has not made that adjustment, but she is young" - John McEnroe on Pole's 'unwillingness' to adapt to faster surfaces
John McEnroe has suggested that reigning WTA World No. 1 Iga Swiatek does not adjust her game according to the demands of faster surfaces. Four of Swiatek's five Grand Slam titles have come on the slow clay of Roland Garros, with her 2022 US Open title triumph being the only exception.
The 2024 season has been a successful one so far for Iga Swiatek. The Pole won the French Open for the third straight year, clinched the bronze medal in women's singles at the Paris Olympics, and also added four WTA 1000 titles to her collection. However, at Majors apart from the French Open, her respective campaigns have ended in disappointment.
At the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the year, the World No. 1 was surprisingly ousted by Czech teenager Linda Noskova in the third round. Swiatek's Wimbledon Championships campaign came to an end in the third round as well. This time around, it was Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva who dashed the Pole's hopes.
Most recently, at the 2024 US Open, Iga Swiatek reached the quarterfinals before losing in straight sets to eventual runner-up Jessica Pegula. In light of these contrasting results between the claycourt Major and the rest of the Grand Slams, John McEnroe shared his assessment of Swiatek's game.
McEnroe criticized Swiatek's nature to be on the front foot at all times and suggested that the Pole is "either unwilling or unable" to play a different style.
"One issue for me is she doesn’t want to play defence at all. At times, she should pull back when the offence isn’t going as well as it can do on clay. She keeps trying to hit out, which is somewhat surprising for someone who prefers a slower surface. I was a little surprised that she is either unwilling or unable to make adjustments on the faster surfaces," McEnroe said at a Eurosport event (via Tennis365).
The former ATP World No. 1 added that having a defensive side to her game would make Swiatek an even more challenging opponent for her rivals. McEnroe acknowledged that the 23-year-old Pole is still young and hoped for her to improve on the defensive aspects as well as her net play.
"I don’t know if she had a dip in confidence, but if you saw someone like Iga digging in and defending as well as she attacks, that would be hard opponents to overcome. I’m a little surprised she has not made that adjustment, but she is young. Hopefully she can make that adjustment and improve a little at the net," McEnroe added.
McEnroe may have been critical of Swiatek regarding her perceived lack of defensive attributes on the court. However, previously, the seven-time Major singles winner had praised the Pole over her athleticism.
John McEnroe lauded Iga Swiatek's athleticism last year
In the buildup to the 2023 Australian Open, John McEnroe told Eurosport that Iga Swiatek was "the best player" in women's tennis. McEnroe also said that the Pole's athleticism reminds him of 24-time Major winner Novak Djokovic.
"I think right now she’s by far and away the best player, she’s a fantastic athlete, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a young woman get slide into the corners, it reminds me of Novak quite a bit," McEnroe said.
Swiatek has a 54-7 win-loss record this season and remains the top-ranked women's singles tennis player on the WTA Tour, despite her failure to get past the quarterfinals at the 2024 US Open and rival and World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka's title triumph at Flushing Meadows.