Iga Swiatek was dumped out of the Cincinnati Open by Aryna Sabalenka just days after complaining to tennis chiefs of an overly packed schedule.
After packing in the wins on clay in the Spring with titles in Madrid and Rome, Swiatek won her third consecutive French Open title dropping just a single set in the process.
An early exit to Yulia Putintseva only really seemed to deserve as a distraction for Swiatek as she geared up to clinch a certain gold in Paris.
In a shock turn of events, Qinwen Zheng broke both the Pole’s heart and her 25-match unbeaten streak at Roland Garros.
With a return to form however in Cincinnati, Swiatek has complained to the WTA about scheduling issues, explaining how player welfare is not being considered properly.
Chris Evert defends Iga Swiatek’s concerns about player welfare with a funny observation
With the Olympics providing both an extra 10 days of matches, as well as a swift surface change, Swiatek appealed to the WTA after her quarter-final win over Mirra Andreeva that players deserved a rest.
Tennis fans were quick to criticise Swiatek’s comments, however Chris Evert has rushed to the defence off the world number
She took to X to say: “I certainly can understand Iga Swiatek’s concern about playing too many tournaments, especially when you go deep in tournaments every week. Adding in the Olympics and much more depth in the game, it’s an important topic….”
I certainly can understand @iga_swiatek concern about playing too many tournaments, especially when you go deep in tournaments every week. Adding in the @Olympics and much more depth in the game, it’s an important topic….
— Chris Evert (@ChrissieEvert)
A fan immediately snapped back to say: “Another tennis player complaining about having to…play tennis. The schedule has not changed since the 80’s.”
Evert, a champion of women’s tennis in both senses, replied that a lot of fans simply don’t understand the demands of the modern game.
She said: “What people don’t understand is there is SO much more depth than the 80’s! I played then!! The players now have to bring their “A” game in the first round; we didn’t!”
What people don’t understand is there is SO much more depth than the 80’s! I played then!! The players now have to bring their “A” game in the first round; we didn’t!
— Chris Evert (@ChrissieEvert)
The WTA is increasingly becoming incredibly competitive
In keeping with Evert’s observation, Jessica Pegula’s first match of her title-winning campaign in Toronto was against a former world number one in Karolina Pliskova – players need to be playing at near 100% throughout the entire year to keep up their ranking.
Nobody predicted Zheng would win Olympic gold, nor did anyone think Barbora Krejcikova could win Wimbledon.
The field is unbelievably close together which is why WTA tournaments always make enthralling television.
Swiatek’s concerns over player welfare are founded upon a willingness to keep the tour as competitive as it can be and negate the amount of injuries players experience.
Sabalenka had to sit out of Wimbledon through injury and fatigue, with Ons Jabeur’s recent injury status making her a US Open doubt.
Increased attention on player welfare will only make the tour more interesting and help the quality stay as high as it can be.
