Iga Swiatek has revealed that she was “crying for 40 minutes” after Ashleigh Barty announced her retirement from tennis.
Swiatek has become the new world No 1 after the Australian’s shock decision to bow out of the sport at the age of 25.
The Pole would have ascended to the top ranking regardless of her performance at the Miami Open, but celebrated her climb to the top of the women’s tennis world with a dominant triumph in Florida, beating Naomi Osaka 6-4, 6-0 in the final.
It continued a winning run that now stretches to 17 consecutive matches, encompassing tournament victories in Doha and at Indian Wells to further establish her place at the top of the rankings.
Like many, Swiatek was caught entirely off-guard by Barty’s decision to retire just months after claiming the Australian Open in dominant fashion, and the 20-year-old was overcome by emotion after hearing the news.
“I was crying for 40 minutes,” Swiatek, the 2020 French Open winner, told BBC Sport. “Mainly, it was because of Ash’s retirement. I didn’t know it was going to happen and it really surprised me.
“I always had this vision that we would all play until we are 35 or something, until our bodies are so tired that we can’t any more.
“I needed time to actually understand what she must have thought. Her decision was really brave and I felt a lot of emotions because of that.”
Swiatek was beaten by Danielle Collins in the last four of the first Grand Slam of the year in Melbourne, with Collins falling short against home favourite Barty in the final.
The Polish player has not advanced beyond the semi-final stage at one of tennis’ four major championships since claiming that French Open as a teenager at Roland Garros.
However Swiatek is in outstanding form as she begins her preparations for another tilt at the chief clay-court crown in Paris, with the 2022 French Open beginning on Sunday 22 May.
The new world No 1 has won four of the last six WTA 1000 events, and admits that her emotion after Barty’s retirement also came as a mark of recognition of her rise to become one of the best in the world - and has suggested she will now take time “to digest” the achievement.
“I also felt emotional because of my own position,” Swiatek explained. “I realised after two hours of being really emotional that ‘hey, you don’t know what is going to happen yet and you still have to win some matches’.
“So I told myself ‘let’s wait with the emotions and with being excited because I have work to do’.”
Swiatek added of achieving the top ranking: “Emotionally it has been really intense and I have felt a range of emotions - from being proud and having satisfaction, to confusion and surprise.
“These last weeks showed me I can trust in myself a little bit more and trust my skills and my tennis. Before I didn’t really know it was possible for me to have a streak like that. So it also kind of surprised me.
“After Doha and after Indian Wells I didn’t have time to digest what I’ve achieved. Right now I am going to take some time to analyse what happened from a ‘work’ point of view.”
