Swiatek’s aura has grown so much at Roland Garros that she is now called the ‘Queen of Clay’.
Key statistics show why.
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Swiatek has won 21 straight matches at the French Open. This marks her fourth-longest winning streak in women’s singles in the Open era.
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Swiatek has won 35 of his 37 matches at Roland Garros.
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She hasn’t lost in Paris since 2021.
Swiatek beat Paolini on Saturday to become the youngest woman to win the French Open four times in the Open era.
Only Chris Evert (7), Steffi Graf (6) and Justine Henin (4) have equaled or bettered her record.
The American great, who won 18 major titles between 1974 and 1986, said he worries “every day” about Swiatek breaking his record at Roland Garros.
“I’m worried about Iga when I put my head under the pillow,” Evert joked to Eurosport.
“I think Iga will hit double digits. I don’t think she’ll break my record here. I think it’s double digits.”
When asked to respond to Evert’s comments, Swiatek smiled. “It’s nice to hear that, but I’m not thinking in those categories,” she said.
“It seems very surreal to even come here and win five Grand Slams. When I was young, I never would have expected something like that.
“Achieving double digits here still seems like a tall order.
“I’m definitely going to work for it and do my best to get better every year and play my best tennis here.”
Most of Swiatek’s Grand Slam success has come on clay, but her dominance on the WTA Tour has been underpinned by her prowess on hard courts.
Her other major win came at the 2022 US Open, with 13 of her 22 WTA titles in acrylic.
Grass has played only 23 matches on the surface during her professional career, 205 on hard and 90 on clay, making her the least proficient on the surface.
Wimbledon is the major tournament where she has had the least success as a professional.
Reaching the quarter-finals last year was her best performance yet, but she also won the junior title at the All England Club in 2018.
“I think Swiatek will win all four Grand Slams,” said former British number one Annabel Croft, recapping the final for BBC Radio 5 Live.
“Look at Nadal. People thought he would never win Wimbledon, but he found a way to win.”
