Iga Swiatek on the hot seat: Rennae Stubbs demands answers ahead of Roland-Garros
Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images Iga Swiatek is still chasing her first trophy of 2026 and will be looking to make progress at the Italian Open, where she’s seeded fourth. Swiatek brings a 14-8 record into the WTA 1000 event in Rome, after exiting early in the third round of the Madrid Open. She retired from that match against Ann Li due to illness, something she’ll be hoping is behind her as she prepares for the next challenge.
And with Roland Garros approaching, former pro Rennae Stubbs thinks there are bigger concerns on the horizon for world number three Swiatek. It’s been a quiet start to the year for Iga Swiatek. She hasn’t made it past the quarterfinals at any event so far and has missed several tournaments because of injury and illness.
Even during last season, although she finished as world number two with three titles, none came from Grand Slams or even WTA 1000 events. This year’s slow start only adds to those growing concerns. Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images Rennae Stubbs thinks Iga Swiatek still has things to prove before Roland Garros Stubbs shared her thoughts on the Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, saying: “I mean listen, Iga has got some questions to answer.
That’s for sure. She loves Rome. “She has won a final there against a very good player by the name of Karolina Pliskova, 6-0, 6-0 once upon a time.
And I think this is going to be a massive emotional test for her. “Because if she does not do well at this tournament, you start to think how much can she handle this disappointment of not winning and doing well on her best surface? “And you know, the coaching changes and the mentality, Daria [Abramowicz] wasn’t in Madrid, how’s she going to react if Daria is in Rome, and then people are going to wonder about this and about that and how the new coaching is working out.