Roger Federer approves Iga Swiatek's around-the-net hot shot, calls it "crazy"
Roger Federer has praised Iga Swiatek for her around-the-net hot shot during her mixed doubles match against Team Kazakhastan at the 2023 United Cup.
Partnering with Hubert Hurkacz in the rubber, Swiatek showcased her athleticism and hit a backhand on full stretch around the post to win a crucial point for Team Poland. They went on to complete the victory in fine fashion, in the process securing a 4-1 scoreline for Poland.
Amusingly, Swiatek gave a nonchalant reaction after the epic moment, shrugging off the winner like it was a daily occurrence for her. The World No. 1 later took to social media to ask Federer for his opinion of the shot, retweeting a video that has gone viral in the last 16 hours.
"Do you approve, Roger Federer?" asked Swiatek.
Iga doing Iga things Do you approve @rogerfederer?🫣 twitter.com/TennisTV/statu…
Federer, a 20-time Grand Slam champion, was left amazed by the shot, just like the rest of the tennis world. He replied to the Pole, calling the shot "crazy" and adding a couple of 'mind-blown' emojis.
"That was crazy" replied the Swiss.
That was crazy🤯🤯🤯🤯 twitter.com/iga_swiatek/st…
Swiatek and Hurkacz dominated the Kazakh pair of Zhibek Kulambayeva and Grigoriy Lomakin with their skills and eventually won the match 6-3, 6-4 to ensure a strong finish to the rubber. Up next, Poland will lock horns with Team Switzerland to decide who enters the knockouts.
"I guess it's for the people to judge" - Iga Swiatek on hitting arguably the shot of her career
In her post-match press conference, Iga Swiatek was asked if her around-the net winner was the best shot she'd ever hit in her career. The Pole replied with characteristic humility, remarking that it was for the fans to decide.
She also credited Team Poland's captain and icon Agnieszka Radwanska as an inspiration, hailing her as an "expert" on hot shots and adding that maybe she should decide how good it was.
"I guess it's for the people to judge, but I tried it a couple of times in practice and it didn't work out, so even I'm surprised," Iga Swiatek said. "I don't know. You've got to ask people where is the ranking. Aga is a specialist in hot shots. I guess you could make a ranking grade, right?"
The World No. 1 also commented on pairing alongside compatriot Hurkacz for the first time, stating that she was happy to practice with him. Swiatek went on to call his game "really powerful."
"I'm pretty happy that I have a chance to also practice with Hubi, because playing mixed doubles is so different rhythm, and I haven't been playing doubles the whole season basically last year, so I'm a little bit rusty. But, you know, having Hubi on my side, it's really helpful, and his game is so powerful that we can really put pressure on our opponents, and hopefully, we will do that in future matches," Iga Swiatek said.