"Iga Swiatek cannot complain" - Paula Badosa disagrees with World No. 1 over French Open debate on noisy crowd behavior
Paula Badosa disagreed with Iga Swiatek asking the crowd to refrain from cheering during points. Swiatek defeated Naomi Osaka in the second round of the French Open.
In a highly anticipated second-round match, Naomi Osaka posed a tough fight to the Pole. Swiatek clinched the first set in a tiebreaker, but Osaka mounted a strong comeback, decisively taking the second set. However, Swiatek rallied to take the third set and won the match 7-6(1), 1-6, 7-5.
After the match, Swiatek wasn't pleased with the crowd as she highlighted the challenge of maintaining focus amidst the loud cheering in the middle of rallies. She emphasized the impact that crowd distractions can have on a player's performance in the post-match on-court interview. She was quoted as saying:
"I have huge respect for you guys and I know we are playing for you, but sometimes under a lot of pressure when you scream something during the rally, it’s really hard to be focused. I usually don’t bring this up because I want to be a player that’s in the zone and focused. But this is serious for us."
"We’re fighting our whole lives to be better and better. Sometimes it’s hard to accept that. The stakes are big. There’s a lot of money to win. Losing a few points may change a lot," she added.
Paula Badosa expressed disapproval of Swiatek's remarks during a recent press conference. The Spaniard highlighted her experiences of playing on smaller courts where the crowd noise was pronounced.
"I think she cannot complain because I played Court 8 and 9 and you can hear everything. Like I can hear Suzanne Lenglen, Philippe Chatrier, Court 6, 7 during the points. I think she is very lucky she can play all the time on Philippe Chatrier and she is okay with that. But I don't mind, As I said I played in small courts these days and I was hearing so much noise. In that moment, I'm just so focused on myself and on my match that it doesn't really bother me."
Badosa further acknowledged the positive impact of fan support, contrasting it with the absence of spectators during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Honestly I like when the fans cheer and all this. I think I get pumped. Look we had a very tough situation years ago when we were playing without fans with the COVID situation, so now for me I'm so happy they are back."
"I thought the crowd was really cool" - Naomi Osaka on Iga Swiatek's complaints about the crowd
Naomi Osaka was asked about Iga Swiatek's statements for the crowd in a post-match press conference. The Japanese appreciated the crowd and stated that she didn't have any issues, noting that she's accustomed to the energetic atmosphere of New York audiences.
“I thought the crowd was really cool. These are the moments for what I work for. It just makes me feel like the crowd is having fun. And I think at the end of the day that's what I want, people to be no matter if I won or lost they said oh I watched the match and I had a great time. I didn’t have a problem with the crowd at all. But I’m used to the New York crowd,” Osaka said.
Osaka's clay court season has not been ideal, with her best performance coming at the Italian Open where she reached the fourth round before being eliminated by Qinwen Zheng.
Meanwhile, Swiatek has dominated the European clay court swing, winning consecutive WTA 1000 events in Madrid and Rome. She is aiming for a three-peat with a victory at the 2024 French Open.