Iga Swiatek has played down the suggestion that chasing after her first Madrid Open title is playing on her mind.
The world No.1 kicked off her bid at the tournament on Thursday with a 6-1, 6-4, win over China’s Wang Xiyu. Swiatek’s victory is her 25th win of the season against just four losses. Overall, she has won 150 matches (excluding team events) since the start of 2022 which is more than any other player on the Tour.
Swiatek has a strong record on the clay with seven out of her 19 WTA trophies being won on the surface. She is a three-time French Open champion, a two-time Stuttgart Open champion and a two-time Italian Open winner. However, Madrid is the only big clay event in Europe that she is yet to conquer with her best run being to the final 12 months ago.
“Obviously [winning Madrid would mean] a lot,” Swiatek said after beating Wang. “Winning any tournament like that, a big one, is a big thing. It’s not something you get used to. You always want to fight for it.”
Due to its high altitude, Madrid is different compared to other clay events with the balls travelling faster and are therefore tougher to control. Also, it is held outdoors unlike last week’s Stuttgart event.
Whilst Swiatek is keen to complete her set of European clay court titles this year in the Spanish capital, she has insisted that it is having no impact on her current mentality.
“I don’t think that way,” she stated. “Basically, I don’t think about winning at the beginning anyway.
“Obviously every tournament has a different atmosphere and is special in its own way. But on the other hand, it’s a WTA 1000, and it doesn’t really matter at the end which one I’m going to win. Every big tournament I win is going to give me confidence no matter where it is or what it looks like.
“So I don’t really mind. I’m going to try to win every tournament I play at and that’s all.”
Switek is bidding to become the first top seed to win the women’s event in Madrid since Serena Williams in 2013. In her next match, she will play 27th seed Sorana Cirstea.
