'who Would Have Expected That?' - Swiatek Triumphs On Grass

"Who would person expected that?"

Iga Swiatek was not connected galore people's radar to triumph Wimbledon - including her own.

The 24-year-old's two-year reign arsenic world number 1 - ended by Aryna Sabalenka past twelvemonth - was underpinned by power connected nan clay and consistency connected nan difficult courts.

Swiatek became known arsenic nan 'Queen of Clay' aft winning 4 French Open titles successful 5 years, while she besides won nan US Open successful 2022.

But she now leaves Wimbledon arsenic nan champion, acknowledgment to an astonishing 6-0 6-0 victory successful conscionable 57 minutes complete Amanda Anisimova successful Saturday's final.

Not only was this Swiatek's first Wimbledon title, it was her first Tour-level title connected grass, having antecedently won nan girls' title astatine SW19.

And arsenic Swiatek herself said arsenic she walked into her post-match news convention - who would person expected that?

"This 1 and nan US Open for judge consciousness amended because no-one expected that," Swiatek said.

"It wasn't a relief. It was much of conscionable bully tennis and moving to make it hap without this baggage connected your shoulders.

"It's thing that is conscionable surreal. I consciousness for illustration tennis keeps astonishing me, and I support astonishing myself."

What makes triumph moreover much astonishing is Swiatek has been obscurity adjacent her ascendant champion complete nan past year.

She did not scope a last for a twelvemonth aft her 2024 French Open triumph, slipping to eighth successful nan world - her lowest ranking since March 2022 - arsenic a result.

There were a substance of reasons - connected and disconnected nan tribunal - arsenic to why Swiatek's level has dipped.

Losing successful nan Olympic semi-finals successful Paris past summertime was a bitter blow, pinch Swiatek saying she cried for "six hours" afterwards.

In November, it was announced Swiatek had tested affirmative for bosom medicine trimetazidine (TMZ) successful an out-of-competition sample. She was subsequently fixed a one-month prohibition aft nan International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted nan consequence was caused by contamination.

More issues cropped up astatine nan commencement of this year.

"Honestly, I needed a mates of months to get backmost connected a due path. It wasn't easy," Swiatek told BBC Sport.

But 1 personification who did telephone Swiatek's Wimbledon triumph was erstwhile Grand Slam semi-finalist Andrea Petkovic.

Petkovic saw a "new freshness" successful Swiatek during nan grass-court tourney successful Bad Homburg - and besides tipped her to triumph Wimbledon, arsenic nan German said herself, "for irrational reasons".

During Swiatek's semi-final lucifer against Jasmine Paolini astatine nan WTA event, Petkovic spotted a ample vertebrate circling supra Swiatek for astir 10 minutes.

When nan players changed ends, nan vertebrate followed Swiatek to nan different broadside of nan court, which Petkovic took arsenic an omen.

"I said location and past she's going to triumph Wimbledon," Petkovic told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"For astir of this twelvemonth you could consciousness unit and hostility erstwhile she stepped connected court.

"In Bad Homburg you could spot that was gone."

Before this year, Swiatek had only reached nan 2nd week of Wimbledon once, successful a quarter-final tally successful 2023.

After a daze third-round conclusion by Yulia Putintseva past year, Swiatek said she had not fixed herself capable clip to mentally retrieve from her French Open triumph a fewer weeks earlier.

Having mislaid to Sabalenka successful nan Roland Garros semi-finals this year, Swiatek went to Mallorca for a week's training connected writer earlier returning to competitory action successful Bad Homburg.

Swiatek reached nan last successful Germany, wherever a conclusion by Jessica Pegula near her successful tears, but it was an denotation that her level connected nan aboveground had improved.

"I consciousness for illustration I person developed arsenic a subordinate and I had clip to practise a small spot much [this year]," said Swiatek.

"I would opportunity we chiefly focused connected my activity and really I should extremity earlier hitting nan ball.

"Also, [we worked] connected accelerated hands because evidently it's important present not to extremity nan movement, moreover though nan shot sometimes is fast."

Swiatek replaced long-time coach Tomasz Wiktorowski pinch Wim Fissette precocious past year, and it has taken clip for nan tweaks she was making to furniture in.

"When you make a large alteration and prosecute a caller coach, it takes a while to spot nan changes," said erstwhile world number 9 Petkovic.

"You consciousness you're progressing and you're expecting to spot results correct away. But it doesn't hap correct away."

Swiatek's service is an area which Fissette has focused on.

The Pole won 79% of her first-serve points astatine Wimbledon - nan joint-second highest successful nan women's singles.

After nan Wimbledon final, Swiatek said her serving was nan champion it has been successful nan full grass-court swing.

"I deliberation she sewage a spot hectic astatine nan commencement of nan season. Now thing is different and she has a spot much patience pinch herself," said Petkovic.

"I deliberation she's besides forgiving herself a spot much if she makes a fewer unforced errors connected nan grass."