Iga Świątek is already the most dominant clay-court player currently on tour, but Danielle Collins believes the Pole has given her WTA rivals another reason to lose sleep ahead of the European clay swing. The six-time Grand Slam champion made waves this week by adding Rafael Nadal’s former coach, Francisco Roig, to her team after cutting ties with Wim Fissette.
Danielle Collins Weighs In on Iga Świątek’s Coaching Change
Although Świątek clinched three titles, including the Wimbledon Championship, under coach Wim Fissette, their partnership ultimately unraveled after her underwhelming start to the 2026 season. A crushing second-round exit at the Miami Open proved to be the final nail in the coffin. The Pole, who admitted to living the “worst nightmare” scenario for a top star after her loss, chose to journey to Rafael Nadal’s academy in Mallorca to reset before the clay-court season.
While there, the 24-year-old announced that she had joined forces with Francisco Roig, who has previously worked with Matteo Berrettini, Emma Raducanu, and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. Most notably, however, he was part of Nadal’s team for 18 seasons, helping the Spaniard win 22 Grand Slam titles. Świątek has since been gearing up for the clay swing, training directly under Roig and absorbing insight from the King of Clay himself.
The tennis world has taken notice of the former World No. 1’s move, with Danielle Collins validating Świątek’s decision to team up with Roig. The American also issued a warning to the rest of the WTA field, highlighting the “scary” prospect of the new collaboration.
“When you’ve had the success that Iga Świątek has had, especially at a young age, all the Grand Slams, all the impressive feats on her resumé, the only person that you can work with at this point is somebody that’s been at the highest, highest, highest level because you’ve been at that level. So, it’s gonna be scary for everybody on tour to see what’s next for Iga Świątek with this new coaching,” Collins said on the Tennis Channel.
MORE: Mpetshi Perricard Blasts Iga Świątek and Francisco Roig After Being Blindsided
All eyes will be on Świątek when she debuts her partnership with Roig at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, which begins on April 13. The Pole, who triumphed at the WTA 500 event in 2022 and 2023, will be eager to kick off her clay-court season on a strong note and get back to winning ways on tour.
The six-time Grand Slam champion is set to compete at the Madrid Open and Italian Open in the lead-up to the French Open, where she will aim to win her fifth title.
