Iga Świątek has had an incredible tennis career so far but is yet to impress at Wimbledon, where her best performance was reaching the quarterfinals in 2023. The Pole’s most notable moment at the grass-court Major has been winning the junior singles title in 2018 and she recently spoke about it.
Iga Świątek Reflects on Wimbledon Junior Triumph and Reality Check
Świątek won the Wimbledon Girls’ Singles title in 2018, a result that hinted at greatness to come. But that early success didn’t translate into immediate professional dominance on grass. At 24, with five Grand Slam titles under her belt, including four at Roland Garros and one at the US Open, Wimbledon remains the only major where she’s yet to reach the semifinals.
Speaking ahead of her campaign at the 2025 edition, Świątek opened up about the contrasting emotions following her junior title.
“I remember you know winning, it felt pretty surreal. But on the other hand, I came back home and like nothing really changed because it was still junior Wimbledon, not the real pro one,” the Pole said.
Świątek said that she initially thought her life was going to be perfect before the tournaments that followed made her believe otherwise.
“So, I remember I thought my life was going to be like perfect now and then I was a bit disappointed it was the same and I still had to get back to work and I played some ITF tournaments afterwards and it was more like a reminder that I’m still not there yet, you know. The work kind of starts now, you know,” the 24-year-old said.
“It gave me… I remember having a lot of just hope and just a feeling that maybe if it was possible now, it’s going to be also possible in the future at the pro level,” she added.
Iga Świątek Will Face Polina Kudermetova in her Wimbledon Opener
Świątek will start her campaign at Wimbledon 2025 against World No. 54 Polina Kudermetova, in what will be the very first encounter between the two. Whoever out of them comes out on top, will take on either Caty McNally or Jodie Burrage in the second round of the grass-court Major.
The Pole enters the tournament after reaching her maiden grass-court final at the Bad Homburg Final. She beat Victoria Azarenka, eighth seed Ekaterina Alexandrova and second seed Jasmine Paolini before losing 4-6, 5-7 to top seed Jessica Pegula in the final.
MORE: Iga Świątek Lauded by Friends Actress Following Bad Homburg Runner-Up Finish
