Imagine two forces of nature colliding on the tennis courts! One is a legendary powerhouse with a reputation for dominance—Serena Williams. Her accolades in tennis highlight 23 grand slams, along with 73 singles titles! The other is a tennis star blazing a trail of triumph, Iga Swiatek, who has won twenty-two singles titles and three consecutive French Open titles(5 Grand Slams titles in total) by the age of 23. Can experience and grit overcome youthful energy and innovation? The former World No. 1 player, Karolina Pliskova’s candid assessment of this subject, sparks a captivating discussion!
During the ‘No Challenges Remaining,’ podcast, the Czech player Pliskova sparked intrigue with her assessment of a hypothetical matchup between Serena Williams and Swiatek. When quizzed about the potential winner of that match, the 32-year-old player confidently declared (as per Onet), “Sure, I think Serena would beat Iga, and if they met on a hard court, then probably for sure.”
The Czech player has first-hand experience playing with both Swiatek and Williams, winning twice against Williams and losing three times against Swiatek. However, she has full faith in Williams to achieve the result that she failed to produce herself. All because of this mandatory trait!
“Despite everything, I had a way with the American. She didn’t like opponents who served hard and hit flat. But the key was not to be afraid of her.” And if we go by the statistics, her statement does not seem too far-fetched!
Swiatek has proved her powerful display of forehand strokes quite many times on the tennis courts, ruling the No. 1 position for 117 weeks. However, despite her mastery of tennis, a successful career on the hard courts still eludes her. Even after earning four grand slams in the French Open, her hard-court results paint a different picture, as she has won 152 matches, losing 42 on that surface!
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Consequently, Swiatek, popularly called the ‘Queen of Clay,’ holds a win percentage of 78.4% on hard courts. Although she did make her mark in the US Open by clinching the title in 2022, her prowess mostly lies on clay(89% Win%), where she has won three consecutive titles during this season alone. Perhaps Iga’ lesser success on hard courts can give Williams an edge over Swiatek! When talking about her own hard court record, the American player has won 541 out of 636 career matches on hard courts!
Besides, with 48 WTA titles on this surface, the former tennis player’s success (200 victories) on the hard courts of grand slams (US Open and Australian Open) further emphasizes her undeniable expertise! Pliskova agrees with Williams’ excellence too, but she found her own strategy quite useful against the American. However, when it comes to playing with Swiatek, Pliskova further described the reasons why she finds it hard to play and win against her!
Pliskova shares her own experience in playing against Serena Williams and Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek’s stuttering form in recent tennis events has cast a shadow of doubt regarding her performances. Her defeat in the Gold medal match at the Olympics and her third-round loss at Wimbledon have posed a challenge for the 23-year-old to revive herself on-court. In a complete contrast of scenarios, Serena Williams last played tennis in 2022 and was currently enjoying her time away from the spotlight. And in an attempt to present the differences in experience of playing against the two players, Pliskova shared her thoughts in the same interview.
“Serena didn’t like players which are playing fast and serving well, so I felt like she was struggling a little bit with my game. And even the matches which I lost to her, I felt like it was even, you know, she would never kind of like guilt me like she did some players…”
The 32-year-old continued, “To play against Iga Swiatek is much harder because she doesn’t give you anything. I feel like Iga Swiatek is not so aggressive but she really gives you nothing and she doesn’t even have one dip where she would have like one bad game, at least in the matches where I played her.”
While Pliskova’s prediction might ignite debate, her expertise and experience lend some credibility to her claim. But we can all agree on one thing. A Serena-Świątek showdown would indeed be a thrilling encounter, testing both players’ skills and mental toughness!
