Iga Swiatek’s Indian Wells title defense was halted in the semi-finals against Elena Rybakina on Friday. The world number one later revealed that she was struggling with a rib injury.
“Of course Elena played great tennis today and I feel like I should play better against her,” Swiatek said after a 6-2, 6-2 loss to the Wimbledon champion who also shocked her in the fourth round of the Australian Open . .
“Honestly, I feel like it’s more me and my mistakes,” she said. “I also don’t feel 100% physically. I have some discomfort in my rib and we are going to consult with the medical team.”
Swiatek said she still plans to defend her title at the Miami Open starting next week.
“While I’m preparing for the game, but we’ll see what the next days will tell us,” she said. – I do not know yet.
Swiatek was frustrated at not being able to implement the tactics developed by her coach after analyzing her loss to Rybakina in Melbourne.
“We thought about the Australian Open more, as if we wanted to learn from this match,” she said. “We analyzed … so I just wanted to take his advice and improve my game. But today I couldn’t do it.”
She said she didn’t have much experience playing due to her injuries, the only example she recalled when she competed at the 2019 French Open.
“Of course, this is a new situation for me,” said the 21-year-old. “Of course, now it is a completely different level. Therefore, I feel that you need to be 100% ready for the matches.
“I played, so there was some kind of fatigue all the time,” she said. “I would say it is permanent, but I am sure that tomorrow or the day after tomorrow it will help in recovery.”
bb/rcw
Source: sports.yahoo.com
