World No. 1 Iga Swiatek said she was “at the airport already” after claiming a very impressive comeback win to progress into the Australian Open third round.
Swiatek, a four-time Grand Slam champion, had her back against the wall when down by a double break to Danielle Collins in the third set of their second-round match at Melbourne Park. With Collins leading 4-1 and having a chance to go 5-1 up in the third set, Swiatek went on a series of five consecutive games won to avoid a shock loss and seal a 6-4 3-6 6-4 win.
“Oh my God, I was at the airport already,” Swiatek jokingly said moments after surviving a major scare against Collins.
After edging out Collins in a grueling three-hour and 57-minute battle, Swiatek highlighted her mindset was to “play hard until the end.” Also, Swiatek said she knew it “would be hard” for Collins to “keep that perfect level” and she remained hopeful some mistakes could happen from the American’s side.
Swiatek on learning from Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic
When asked if Swiatek felt the urge to improve something in her game after scraping past Collins, the Pole noted it would be hard for her to improve anything in a one-hour practice during the middle of the tournament. However, Swiatek remains positive and calm about the entire situation as the 22-year-old Pole is drawing inspiration from Nadal and Djokovic, who have a history of coming out on top at Grand Slams even when it is not all perfect.
“We’ve seen many tournaments where, I mean, Novak, I haven’t seen him play, but it seemed like he’s not winning too easily. He’s also that kind of person that probably improves during the tournament, is able to do that,” Swiatek said.
“I also saw Rafa on some tournaments doing that. I’m just trying to take an example from that and not panic so early.”
In the Australian Open third round, Swiatek faces 19-year-old Linda Noskova. Last year, Swiatek ousted Noskova 6-1 6-4 in their first meeting in Warsaw.
