Iga Swiatek recalls 'stressful' junior clash with Elena Rybakina ahead of Italian Open 2023 meeting
World No. 1 Iga Swiatek recently recalled her junior clash with Elena Rybakina, ahead of their match at the 2023 Italian Open.
Swiatek advanced to the quarter-finals in the Italian capital with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Donna Vekic. The two-time French Open champion will face Rybakina in the quarterfinals, which will be a tough test for her as the Pole has been defeated by the Kazakh the last two times they have met.
Following her victory over Vekic, Iga Swiatek reminisced her loss to Elena Rybakina in the 2017 Junior finals in Milan, which was their last meeting on clay. She recalled feeling stressed because there was a camera live-streaming their match on the internet.
"I think it was the first match that was streamed live on Internet. It really stressed me out (smiling). Yeah, rookie mistake. Yeah, I remember that. I remember it was one of the biggest tournaments on, like, the junior tour. I was really happy to be in the final. For me, it was like I started to believe more a little bit in myself maybe," Swiatek said.
"Yeah, for sure, the main thing I remember was that stress. I don't know if my coach told me or somebody texted me that it's going to be streamed. Horrible (laughter). Yeah, but I was pretty young, so," the Pole added.
"This time I don't have, like, any expectations" - Iga Swiatek on facing Elena Rybakina in Rome quarterfinals
Iga Swiatek then spoke about her upcoming quarterfinal match in the WTA 1000 tournament against Elena Rybakina, saying she would try to get in the mood and treat the match like any other.
"I would say for now I don't have any mindset. For sure I'm going to get into the mood tomorrow. For now I'm just focusing on recovery. No, I would say, like, it's kind of neutral. I just want to treat this match as any other one," Swiatek said.
The 21-year-old added that she has no expectations this time and will simply try to play her best tennis.
"This time I don't have, like, any expectations. I'm just going to come out and play the best game possible. Yeah, that's all. Nothing special, honestly," Iga Swiatek said.