The Madrid Open final between Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka made the tennis world, including Chris Evert take notice. Swiatek came out on top in a topsy-turvy three-set encounter, as many hailed it as the dawn of a new major rivalry in women’s tennis. Sabalenka, the world number two, has been quite vocal about how she tries to chase down Swiatek to become the number one in the world. But what about Swiatek? Well, instead of ‘thinking about the Aryna’ she has her eyes set for way bigger goals.

The gripping finale in Madrid saw two of the WTA’s famed ‘Big 3’ go at it as Swiatek avenged her 2023 final loss in the same tournament. The two emerging rivals do bring out the best in each other something that Sabalenka has acknowledged. During the WTA Insider podcast, the host pointed out that Sabalenka has said that she thinks about chasing down Swiatek while she is practicing and it has helped her improve. But does Swiatek feel the same?

Swiatek replied, “Well, I wouldn’t say I have like, I don’t have this, that situation as she has, like, I’m not thinking about the Aryna when I’m practising or something. It’s more that I know that the competition is big.” Apart from Swiatek and Sabalenka, Kazakh player Elena Rybakina, third cog of the Big 3, is also a strong challenger for the top and she is followed by the likes of Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula, both with merits of their own. As such Swiatek has to keep performing at her best to hold on to that top spot.

Swiatek further went on to add “And if I’m gonna stop for a while I might be pushed out, you know. The Pole did mention that not Sabalenka but another player made her “think” about them.

She cited her match against Ons Jabeur in the finals of the 2022 Italian Open and said, “So remember the game from 0-40. So physically I was like ‘Oh my God’, I was so tired. The rallies were long, Ons was playing a tricky game you had to run different directions and everything…So this was the kind of, you know, moment that Aryna maybe like talking about. But I didn’t have one with her.”

The world number one admitted, “It’s more like you know, as I said, you just feel that competition is big. And you can’t stop, you know, you have to push for more, and it gives me motivation for sure.“ Her comments about Sabalenka come after her vile shade at the Belarusian player following the Madrid Open final.

Sabalenka courted controversy when she said that she prefers watching men’s tennis over the women’s game as it has “more strategy and its more interesting” in a pre-tournament press conference. After Swiatek’s thrilling 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(9-7) win in the final, she quipped, “Who’s going to say now that women’s tennis is boring right?”

But does the recent snub and subtle shade hint that Iga Swiatek doesn’t like Aryna Sabalenka? Absolutely not, and here’s why.

“We are just different” – Iga Swiatek on Aryna Sabalenka

During a recent press conference in Stuttgart, Iga Swiatek named Aryna Sabalenka among the top three “best players on tour.” Last year, during an interview with Rzeczpospolita, she openly admitted that she doesn’t want to be a part of “contributing to hatred“ towards anyone.

The Polish tennis star stated, “I see that Poles don’t really like her. We simply have two completely different personalities colliding. You can see the contrast. I wouldn’t say I’m a good character and she’s a bad one because that puts her in a negative light.“

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Iga Swiatek went on to add, “We are just different. I don’t want to be one of those people who judges. I know what life is like on the internet and I don’t want to contribute to hatred towards anyone. First of all, we have great respect for each other and are kind to each other.“

The two players are different and the tennis they served up in Madrid is a reminder of their capabilities. We could be witnessing the dawn of a new era in women’s tennis, but according to Swiatek, it’s more than just Sabalenka vs her. Do you agree with her comments?