Iga Swiatek is just one Australian Open title away from entering the rich list of players who have completed the Career Grand Slam. Twice, she has been knocked out at the semifinal stage in Melbourne Park. But this time, she will be hoping to turn the tide in her favor.
The main draw of the 2026 Australian Open commences on Sunday, January 18. Swiatek has been preparing for the one Grand Slam trophy that eludes her cabinet. She was far from her best for Team Poland in the United Cup, as they finally won the title this year after beating Switzerland in the final. A troubling trend appeared, as Swiatek lost two important matches ahead of the Australian Open.
Speaking on the latest episode of the “Big T” podcast, former WTA pro and 2018 US Open doubles champion, CoCo Vandeweghe, gave her take on Swiatek’s current form.
“That backhand for Iga is what saves her, but it’s a player who can match her in the backhand wing. And you’ve seen that difficult matchup with Coco Gauff,” said Vandeweghe. “You’ve seen that difficult matchup with benches, Sabalenka and Robacona, where she feels panicked and has to bail out of the backhand. And that puts so much extra pressure on that forehand wing for Iga’s beyond tech. To me, I think coming into January, you’re supposed to be refreshed, regenerated, and you’re already mentally frazzled.”
“I hope nothing terrible is going on off the scenes that we don’t know about. But I think for anyone looking from the outside in, this is worrisome because this is where you’re supposed to… This is a happy slam we’re going into, everybody. Like, we gotta enjoy ourselves,” Vandeweghe added.
