Iga Swiatek has spent the better part of her career being the answer to every question about women’s tennis. In 2026, she’s the third seed—not the favorite. Winning a fifth title on the Parisian clay would place her level with Justine Henin on the all-time winners list for this event. 

She has won her opening two matches, defeating Emerson Jones 6-1, 6-2 in the first round and Sara Bejlek 6-2, 6-3 in the second, both in straight sets, to move into the third round. And she has a lot to say about how things look from her current perspective. 

After her win over Bejlek on Wednesday, a reporter asked Swiatek whether women’s tennis is in a particularly good state, given how many players can win the title, and whether that compares favorably to the men’s side, where one player has emerged as the clear favourite. Swiatek wasn’t about to let the framing stand unchallenged.

“First part of the question… are you asking if it’s worse? Like, it’s not good?” she said, before laughing when the reporter clarified it was meant as a compliment. “Ah it’s good! Ah, okay you like it!”

Then came the sharper part of her answer. The WTA was harshly criticized for its lack of‌ strong representation when Ash Barty retired in 2022. Today, the same open depth is being extolled. Swiatek pointed out the disparities in the way people express the same thing. “Before when Ash retired, people were like ‘Oh there’s no one player who’s winning.’ And they didn’t like it because they thought WTA was inconsistent. And now you like that there are many players who can win. I guess it all depends on who’s asking the question.”

She acknowledged the notion that there’s consistency in women’s tennis, stating that the best players have proven their worth enough, allowing fans to follow them throughout the season as the draw remains wide open. “There is consistency. You can see in the results of the top players and that’s also good, because fans of these top players can really follow and see them a bit longer.”

She didn’t shy away when the question shifted to the ATP. “Jannik is so good. And Carlos is injured now but obviously both of them have been winning most of the tournaments. I guess their fans are really happy. And I am because I love watching them play. But for sure it’s a bit predictable also. But you never know what’s gonna happen later on. So we’ll see.”

The irony is sharp: the player who once was that dominant force now watches it unfold on the men’s side.

Iga Swiatek in the third round with her title push gathering momentum

For those keeping a close eye on Iga Swiatek’s 2026 campaign, the timing of the comment shouldn’t come as a surprise. Magda Linette, the same player who took the win in Miami two months ago and sparked a chain of events that changed Swiatek’s season, is waiting for her in the third round.

On March 19, Linette beat Swiatek 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 in Miami’s second round. The loss snapped Swiatek’s 73-match opening-round winning streak. 

Four days later, Swiatek fired Fissette after 17 months. By early April, she had hired Francisco Roig, who was part of Rafael Nadal’s coaching team for 16 Grand Slam wins, as the replacement. A defeat to Linette changed everything for the former world No. 1’s team. 

Head-to-head: 1-1. Swiatek won 6-1, 6-1 in Beijing (October 2023, hard court). They have never played against each other on clay. This will also be the first all-Polish Open Era main draw clash at Roland Garros – a historic match that has already been a personal and tactical duel. 

Linette’s best result at Roland Garros before this year was the third round, reached in 2021 and 2017. Getting there again, after defeating a seeded Jelena Ostapenko in the second round, is already a pretty solid Paris campaign for the 34-year-old. Swiatek had a 0-6 head-to-head record against Ostapenko, so there is an argument that Linette’s win inadvertently did the third seed a favour, even as it sets up the most loaded possible opponent for Swiatek in this round. 

For Swiatek, it’s been a gradual but steady improvement since Roig’s signing. Her 6-2, 6-3 win over Bejlek on Wednesday was her 42nd victory in 45 main-draw matches at Roland Garros, equalling Chris Evert’s Open Era record at this tournament. It was also her 20th victory this season. She made 38 unforced errors and will not have been entirely satisfied with the quality, but she remained focused and broke cleanly throughout. The third round is a rematch with history—Linette’s Miami win triggered Swiatek’s coaching overhaul.