'Sad' world No.1 rips 'disappointing' fiasco

2 years ago 155

Top-ranked Iga Swiatek volition not play successful the Billie Jean King Cup and complained astir that lawsuit being scheduled to commencement instantly aft the WTA Finals.

"I'm disappointed that (the) tennis governing bodies didn't travel to an statement connected thing arsenic basal arsenic the calendar of tournaments, giving america lone 1 time to question done the globe and changing the clip zone," Swiatek wrote connected societal media. "This concern is not harmless for our wellness and could origin injury."

The WTA Finals — which adjacent retired the women's tennis tour's play and are for the apical 8 singles players and apical 8 doubles teams — are successful Fort Worth, Texas, from October 31 to November 7. The Billie Jean King Cup — a squad contention tally by the International Tennis Federation — volition beryllium held successful Glasgow, Scotland, from November 8-13.

Swiatek, a 21-year-old from Poland, is establishing herself arsenic a ascendant unit successful women's tennis. She is simply a three-time expansive slam champion, including the French Open successful June and the US Open successful September. Those triumphs made her the archetypal pistillate since 2016 to triumph 2 large titles successful a azygous season.

Heading into a tourney she entered this week successful Ostrava, Czech Republic, Swiatek is 57-7 with 7 titles successful 2022. She enactment unneurotic a 37-match winning streak from February to July that was the longest connected the WTA successful a quarter-century and helped her gain six consecutive trophies.

Swiatek said she arrived astatine the determination to beryllium retired the Billie Jean King Cup aft "thinking it done a batch and discussing it with my squad each implicit again."

The different 11 countries competing determination are Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Czech Republic, Italy, Kazakhstan, Spain, Slovakia, Switzerland and the United States.

As of now, different singles players successful presumption to vie astatine the WTA Finals whose countries are going to beryllium successful the Billie Jean King Cup see No. 4 Paula Badosa of Spain, No. 6 Jessica Pegula of the U.S. and No. 8 Coco Gauff of the U.S.

Swiatek wrote that her withdrawal "makes maine sad" and added: "I'm precise sorry, due to the fact that I play for Poland whenever it's imaginable and I ever springiness it my best."

She said she plans to "to speech to the WTA and ITF successful bid to alteration something. This concern is hard not lone for the players similar me, but chiefly for the tennis fans that enactment our sport."

ITF President David Haggerty said his radical is atrocious Swiatek won't instrumentality portion successful the squad contention "and recognises that the docket for the 2 large year-end events presents a situation for players competing successful some events. We person been moving with the WTA to effort to coordinate suitable dates."

Haggerty added that the ITF changed the BJK Cup finals docket truthful teams specified arsenic Poland and the US would commencement arsenic precocious arsenic possible.

"We are committed to moving with the WTA connected the 2023 schedule," Haggerty said successful a connection issued by the ITF, "so that we person a amended modulation betwixt the 2 competitions."

The WTA Finals were moved from Shenzhen, China, arsenic portion of the suspension of each tournaments successful that state due to the fact that of concerns astir the information of Peng Shuai, a expansive slam doubles champion who accused a erstwhile Chinese authorities authoritative of intersexual assault.

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