Former world number one, Iga Swiatek, served a one-month ban last year after testing positive for a banned substance (TMZ). If we dive deeper into it, she was provisionally suspended on September 12, 2024, and as a result, she missed three tournaments (Korea Open, China Open, and the Wuhan Open). Explaining the first three weeks during that dark phase in her career, she claimed it was “pretty chaotic” and probably the “worst time” of her life. A few months later, Swiatek revealed how scared she was of people turning their backs on her for what she had to go through during that time. Explaining the situation further in an interview with Tennis Insider Club in January 2025, Swiatek said, “You can be at peace with yourself that you didn’t do anything wrong, but no one actually treats you like that… Especially the people that are kind of prosecuting you. Even when you’re telling the truth, you feel like they treat you like a liar.” It was literally three weeks of “crying daily” for the Pole. But has that dark phase now introduced a major impact on her game?

Iga Swiatek is not having a good time on the court recently. She’s yet to win a title since clinching the Roland Garros in June last year. Her straight-sets defeat to America’s Danielle Collins was like a bolt from the blue for all her fans. As a result of that early exit and her poor form, there is now a chance of her dropping to the number four in the rankings. This will be her lowest position since 2022. What could be the reason for this sudden downfall? Well, tennis bigwigs Jon Wertheim and Andy Roddick gave a hint recently.

Three days ago, during the ‘Served‘ podcast, while speaking on this topic, Wertheim said, “I think there’s a real crisis here. I think that some of this is the match results, some of this is just she doesn’t project joy, and you just, I mean, she..we’ve seen social media posts, we’ve seen interviews, you see her this stress welded to her face when she plays. So, some of this is just the results haven’t been there but some of this also is the way she is projecting. I mean my pet theory hot take is that this doping incident really impacted her. I think most people that look at the facts reach the conclusion. This says a whole lot about the process says very little about her ethics. I don’t think a lot of people think that she did anything wrong. I think it’s really impacted her.” 

Wertheim believes there is clearly some chaos in the camp. He also highlighted the offseason coaching change, which didn’t pay off, but moreover, he looked a bit concerned, seeing the possibilities of Iga Swiatek dropping to fifth place in the rankings if Jasmine Paolini wins the Italian Open this year. There is a high possibility now of the defending champion entering as a fourth seed at the Roland Garros. What does Andy Roddick have to say on this? Well, even Roddick agreed, saying, “I have a hard time thinking that the melatonin you know situation, it being announced very publicly, I think it’s had a real effect on her, and you know she admitted that much when she released the social media post right before Miami. It just feels you know like she looks like she feels the eyeballs and chatter, and honestly, I don’t see too much of it.”

Interestingly, Andy Roddick was among the first ones who called out Iga Swiatek’s doping case “unfortunate” and also claimed, “I can’t call it doping.” Moreover, he had previously even advised Swiatek to seek help from Jannik Sinner to know if there is any hacks which could have helped her deal with the challenges that comes with these cases. Especially the mental toll, amidst constant criticisms! 

Speaking on how to handle these situations when she makes a comeback, Roddick had even mentioned, “If I’m in her corner I would just say don’t have a moment where you are exhausted by it, just be patient with the process and do what you have to do. The more emotion you show, the more likely it is to be a story over and over again.” Roddick has always been a big supporter of Iga Swiatek and this time he was also spotted taking a jibe at the Polish media. But why?

Andy Roddick Slams the Polish Journalists for Their Constant Criticisms of Iga Swiatek

Iga Swiatek hasn’t reached a final since her title-winning run at Roland Garros last year. She has a win-loss record of 27-9 (75%) this season, and that’s quite low as per the standards she has set for herself over the last few years. Amid all these, Swiatek has been facing a lot of criticism over her poor form. There has been a lot of buzz in the Polish media recently. Just a few days ago, a report claimed that Swiatek has decided to skip the Wimbledon Championships this year. But later on, she clarified it saying, “a lot of stuff about me that are not true.”

Apart from that, Swiatek recently also complained about her bizarre experience with paparazzi and the media during the Miami Open. She claimed that they followed her almost to her apartment. After hearing all these buzz surrounding the behavior of media towards the former world number one, Roddick said, “She complains about the Polish media. I’m sorry, if you are a sports journalist in Poland and you are crushing Iga on a week to week basis you are a f—ing moron. You are. I’m sorry.”

He also highlighted how Jannik Sinner is being treated in Italy after his doping saga. “She is the greatest sportsperson you have ever had. Counter that to the Italian press giving Jannik a standing ovation when he walks into the press room, which is also ridiculous this week in Rome. If you are a Polish journalist and you are making Iga’s life really difficult and not throwing a parade every time she talks to you, you are a moron. It’s amazing.“

Now with the French Open knocking at the door, Iga Swiatek claims it’s “stupid to expect a lot” especially after seeing her recent performance in the last few tournaments. However, having said that, she’s keeping no stone unturned in her preparations and Swiatek has already started training at the Roland Garros. Do you think she can win her fifth title this year?