While Iga Świątek failed to secure her first title on grass at the Bad Homburg Open, the pictures of her and Jessica Pegula posing with their trophies prompted a flurry of reactions from fans on social media.
Many of the fans expressed their displeasure at the size of the trophy awarded to the former World No. 1.
Iga Świątek’s Bad Homburg Runner-Up Trophy Sparks Disappointment Among Fans
Pegula secured a commendable win over former World No. 1 Iga Świątek 6-4, 7-5, preventing the latter from winning her first grass-court final. Although Swiatek was once a junior champion at Wimbledon, she has so far struggled to adapt to the faster grass courts as a pro.
Besides the disappointment of losing the maiden opportunity to the American pro, the runner-up trophy also became a focus of negative attention from fans. While Pegula posed with her black colored trophy, Świątek was seen holding a small elephant-shaped pendant.
To this, a fan shared a hilarious hypothetical scenario, making fun of the small prize.
“It’s an elephant, imagine it was a cat, you’d need a microscope to see it,” they commented.
It’s an elephant, imagine it was a cat, you’d need a microscope to see it 🤣
— Jef (@JefMaurice) June 28, 2025
One of the fans pointed out that Pegula’s pendant was relatively bigger than that of Świątek’s.
“even the pendant of JPeg was bigger,” they wrote.
even the pendant of JPeg was bigger 🙃
— Deya🌈 (@Desiree1228) June 28, 2025
Another fan deemed the runner-up trophy ‘weird’, “This is the weirdest runner up trophy ever…it was a tiny elephant charm on a leather necklace. It looked super awkward for both Jess and Iga.”
This is the weirdest runner up trophy ever…it was a tiny elephant charm on a leather necklace. It looked super awkward for both Jess and Iga…😬
— Deb Schiel🟧 🇺🇦🌊☮️🐶🐶🐘🐘 (@deb_schiel) June 28, 2025
One of the fans slammed the tournament organizers and mentioned how the WTA event in Berlin where Wang Xinyu received a similar prize.
“What’s with german tournaments and these stupid necklaces! first xinyu and now iga… HAVE SOME RESPECT FOR MY GIRLS IDC.”
what’s with german tournaments and these stupid necklaces 😭 first xinyu and now iga… HAVE SOME RESPECT FOR MY GIRLS IDC pic.twitter.com/NyuCzRDmcf
— mady 🦭 (@theWAGproject) June 28, 2025
Following the match, Swiatek will turn her focus toward the upcoming grass court Major, eyeing her maiden Wimbledon title.
Świątek Finds New Confidence on Grass at Bad Homburg
Despite losing the opportunity to secure her first-ever trophy on grass, Swiatek expressed optimism about the upcoming major event. During the on-court interview after the match, the five-time Grand Slam champion mentioned how her campaign at Bad Homburg helped her gain confidence on grass.
“This tournament shows there’s hope for me on grass. It’s a place where I just feel like I can just focus on tennis and on improving as a player, and I feel like it’s going a good way. So thank you for the opportunity to play here,” she said.
“This tournament shows there’s hope for me on grass.” 🌱
Iga Swiatek wraps up a great week in Bad Homburg. 💪 pic.twitter.com/G3FtBStn7N
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 28, 2025
Looking forward to Wimbledon, Swiatek is all set to begin her campaign with an opening round match against Russian player Polina Kudermetova on July 1, marking the first time the two will face off on the WTA tour.
Read More: Iga Swiatek vs Polina Kudermetova Wimbledon 2025 Preview – Head-to-Head and Prediction
