Missing: Iga Swiatek to skip Billie Jean King Cup Finals for 2nd year in a row
For the second year in a row, Iga Swiatek will not be playing in the Billie Jean King Cup, according to the latest reports coming out of Poland.
In 2022, Swiatek opted out of the women's team event because of scheduling conflicts. The Billie Jean King Cup took place in Glasgow, Scotland, just a day after the end of the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas.
Having qualified for the Year-end Championships, the four-time Grand Slam champion did not think it was wise to overexert herself, especially at the end of a very long season.
"I was thinking it through a lot and discussing it with my team all over again, but I will not be able to play at the Billie Jean King Cup in Glasgow. And it makes me sad. I'm very sorry, because I play for Poland whenever it's possible and I always give it my best. Playing in Poland this year was an honor and I hoped to do this again at the end of the season," Swiatek had said in a post on social media.
The 22-year-old added that she was disappointed in the WTA (which organizes the Finals) and the ITF (which organizes the Billie Jean King Cup) for not coming to an agreement on the calendar and thereby putting players' health at risk.
"I'm disappointed that tennis governing bodies didn't come to an agreement on something as basic as the calendar of tournaments, giving us only one day to travel through the globe and changing the time zone."
This situation is not safe for our health and could cause injury. I'm going to talk to the WTA and ITF in order to change something," Swiatek said.
This year, the Billie Jean King Cup Finals are scheduled to take place in the second week of November (7-13) in Seville, Spain. The WTA Finals, meanwhile, is scheduled to take place from October 29 to November 5 in Cancun, Mexico, another calendar conflict that has seemingly discouraged the World No. 2 from playing for Poland once again.
Polish tennis commentator Marek Furjan broke the news on social media earlier today, revealing that Iga Swiatek will play her final tournament of the season at the WTA Finals. Magda Linette, therefore, will don the role of No. 1 in Poland's Billie Jean King Cup squad for the second year in a row.
"Iga Świątek will not play in the finals @BJKCup in Seville. Just like last year, the first racket of the Polish national team in this tournament will be Magda Linette. Iga's last performance of the season will be @WTAFinals in Cancún," Furjan wrote.
In Swiatek's absence, Poland finished at the bottom of Group D in last year's Finals in Glasgow, losing 1-2 to the United States and 1-2 to the Czech Republic.
Iga Swiatek reaches China Open final with dominant win over Coco Gauff
Iga Swiatek, who has qualified for the 2023 WTA Finals already, reached the final of the 2023 China Open on Saturday, beating fellow WTA Finals qualifier Coco Gauff in straight sets.
Having lost their previous clash at Cincinnati, the World No. 1 exacted revenge on the American with her 6-2, 6-3 win, also putting an end to Gauff's tour-leading 16-match win-streak in the process.
Up next, Swiatek will lock horns with Liudmila Samsonova in the final of the WTA 1000 tournament. The Russian won her semifinal clash in straight sets as well, beating Elena Rybakina 7-6(7), 6-3.