Iga Swiatek has admitted she is struggling mentally on court and feeling disconnected after her shock opening round defeat at the Miami Open. World No. 50 Magda Linette defeated the world No. 3 star 6-1, 5-7, 6-3 in an all-Polish encounter on Thursday, March 19, snapping Swiatek’s 73-match opening-round streak on the WTA Tour that stretches back to the 2021 WTA Finals.
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Swiatek said her game is not as natural as it used to be and called the defeat a poor performance. She added that the emotions she felt were unfamiliar after years of consistency, but vowed to return to exercise, reset and work through the issues.
“Tennis is complicated in my head. I know it’s supposed to be simple. In terms of my mentality and how I feel on the court, it will take time,” Swiatek told reporters after the match.
“For me, it was a bad match, consciously or unconsciously, it’s hard for me to say. I have to work to get out of it because I haven’t felt things like this in five years. I’m just going to go back to work, try to take something positive from practice and try to figure it out,” added Swiatek.
HOW LINETTE FAILED SWIATEK
Swiatek looked firmly in control early on, storming through the opening set and looking to be heading for another routine victory. However, Linette gradually regained control with a more assertive baseline display and sharper delivery under pressure. She overcame a tight second set to level before seizing the momentum in the decider to complete the comeback in 2 hours and 10 minutes.
The numbers reflected Linette’s control after the opening set. She fired five aces to Swiatek’s four and won 90 of 162 points played to 72. Linette converted two of her eight break opportunities, while Swiatek had just one break point in the second and third sets and failed to convert.
The win sent Linette into the third round, where she will face Alexandra Eal, who opened her campaign with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Germany’s Laura Siegemund. Eala enjoyed a dream run in Miami last yearwho reached the semi-finals with wins over Iga Swiatek, Jelena Ostapenko and Madison Keys.
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Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
20 March 2026 17:56 IST
