"She's an inspiration to a lot of players, me included" - Ons Jabeur on Iga Swiatek
Tunisian WTA player Ons Jabeur has lauded Iga Swiatek for her recent form, saying that the World No. 1 is an inspiration for her colleagues on tour.
Swiatek racked up her 23rd consecutive win with her victory over Aryna Sabalenka in the Stuttgart final. However, the Pole has withdrawn from the Madrid Open, citing a shoulder injury.
#1 Iga Swiatek, winner of her last four tournaments, has withdrawn from WTA 1000 Madrid citing a right shoulder injury.
Nevertheless, Jabeur spoke in glowing terms about Swiatek on Media Day in Madrid, saying:
"She inspires us, to be honest. We want it or not, she's an inspiration to a lot of players, and me included."
The Tunisian said that she would like to achieve the same level of consistency as Swiatek. However, Jabeur cheekily hoped that the Pole would not continue her winning streak against her, adding:
"I hope I can achieve that level because I don't know what she's doing right now, but what she's doing is right. To be able not to lose a match is the goal for every player, and I hope she can continue that way, but not against me."
Jabeur added that Swiatek is a deserving World No. 1, saying:
"It didn't happen just over a day. Even though Barty was No.1, and she took off her name, it was completely deserved for Iga to be there and she showed it, winning all the tournaments."
The Tunisian hailed Swiatek for taking good care of her body, adding:
"I hope she feels well. I know playing a lot of matches is not easy. We saw how Barty she played a lot of matches last year and how she got injured at the French Open. So it's a very smart move for her maybe to take care of her body."
Iga Swiatek's 2022 campaign so far
Iga Swiatek has been the most consistent player on the WTA tour this year. She opened her season with back-to-back semi-final appearances in Adelaide and Melbourne.
She lost to then-World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty in in Adelaide, while Danielle Collins halted the Pole's march at the Australian Open. Swiatek then endured an early exit in Dubai, losing to Jelena Ostapenko in a third-set tie-break in the Round of 16.
However, Iga Swiatek has been on a roll since then, winning 23 consecutive matches. She has picked up titles in Doha, Indian Wells, Miami and Stuttgart, becoming the first Polish player to ascend to World No. 1.
Iga Swiatek has won 23 consecutive matches in the last 61 days. The last time a player has won 23 matches in a row in fewer days was Serena Williams in 2013 in 58 days between Miami. https://t.co/zHkcJwG7uk
After helping Poland beat Romania in the Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers, where she dropped just one game in two matches, Swiatek continued her winning ways on the clay in Stuttgart.
The 20-year-old racked up consecutive straight-sets wins before recovering from a set down against Liudmila Samsonova to reach the final. Swiatek then made short work of World No. 4 Sabalenka, dropping only two games in each set.
In the process, Iga Swiatek improved her head-to-head lead against Sabalenka to 2-1 as she notched up her 23rd win in a row.