Rio Olympics gold medalist Monica Puig has praised Iga Swiatek’s consistency and noted she believes the Pole is “mentally one of the strongest players out there.” Swiatek, 21, had a very dominant 2022 season, winning eight of her nine finals.
Also, Swiatek set up a new record for the most consecutive wins on the WTA Tour in the 21st century – the Pole won 37 consecutive matches at one point in 2022. In the last two weeks, Swiatek won Doha and finished as runner-up in Dubai.
“I think they’re doing a really good job of it, especially Iga. Wow, what can I say? Mentally, she’s one of the strongest players out there,” Puig said on Tennis Channel’s Inside-In podcast, per Sportskeeda.
Puig praises Swiatek’s mental strength
Puig, who announced her retirement from tennis last year, faced an enormous level the pressure and expectations after winning the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Reflecting on her own experience, Puig knows top players face a lot of challenges. “To me, a lot of people would say, ‘If you can’t handle this pressure and what’s going on right now, then you’re not cut out for this.’
That was the response. Nowadays, I feel like people are more understanding of the fact that we are going through all this pressure. It’s more like, let’s get help to see what you’re going through…
