Iga Swiatek reveals ‘players are dissatisfied’ with 2024 WTA Calendar
Iga Swiatek has hit out at the lack of communication from the WTA in terms of calendar changes for 2024, with the world No.1 claiming that players need ‘more balance and time to get back home’.
Swiatek has been enjoying her time away from the matchcourt in the Maldives with her family, after regaining her No.1 ranking after winning the WTA Finals in Cancun.
This tournament was a huge source of frustration for players, including Swiatek, who were not happy about the last-minute announcement and construction of the venue for one of the biggest events of the year.
And with the 2024 calendar being released earlier this month, there is no sign about where the Finals will be held once again, despite the full list of tournaments being released.
What has been noticed by many is that the season has been extended by two weeks, and Swiatek has voiced her disappointment when speaking to Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita.
“There is room for improvement,” claimed the four-time Grand Slam champion. “As players, we are dissatisfied with the calendar for next year and the increase in the number of mandatory tournaments and restrictions related to withdrawing from them.”
Swiatek continued, “We want to change this. We need more balance and time to get back home. Sometimes, however, we beat our heads against the wall. Some decisions seem to be the result of promises made to third parties, federations and tournament organisers.
A new season awaits 🎾 👀
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— wta (@WTA) November 13, 2023
“We find out about them after the fact. This causes frustration. Only a handful of players were aware of the calendar reform and the WTA cannot lead to such a situation again, since it considers itself an organization created for tennis players.”
The 22-year-old has earned $9,857,686 in 2023, which is over $1.5 million more than her closest rival Aryna Sabalenka, and Swiatek acknowledged her privilege to be able to have a more flexible work-life balance.
“I hope that we will be able to change something – for example in the rules regarding withdrawing from tournaments,” said Swiatek.
“Fortunately, I am in a situation where I can afford for my family to go on a trip with me, but not everyone can afford it. Many players rather save all their money to pay their coaches.’
She added, “However, there is a difference between taking your family with you and returning home, when you can wash your clothes and spend time in the place where you grew up. I often miss Warsaw.”
Swiatek was born in the Polish capital and actually won her first ever WTA 250 title there this year, however she won’t have the opportunity to defend her title in 2024, as the tournament no longer appears on the calendar.
Inside the baseline…
The WTA have come under a lot of pressure for their communication skills in recent months, with the likes of Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina all hitting out at the organisation. The 2024 calendar does appear to have some flaws, some of which Swiatek has highlighted, with seven of the 10 WTA 1000 tournaments being expanded to two weeks. There is also the issue of having a WTA 500 tournament on the week of the Olympic Games, as well as a lack of WTA 250 tournaments for players lower down in the rankings.
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