It’s not just the WTA titles racking up for Polish trailblazer Iga Swiatek. Along her way to becoming the best in her generation, Swiatek has also attracted numerous controversies that tarnish her otherwise potent reputation as a powerful and gritty tennis player. And just before she starts her Wimbledon campaign, the 24-year-old is once again embroiled in controversy following allegations from her opponent, Victoria Azarenka. And the fans are having their say on the matter, which took place on June 24. So, let’s dive right into it.

The 2025 Wimbledon has started, but it’s the qualifiers going on right now. Meanwhile, the big names are brushing up on their slices and backhands in other tournaments. Exactly one such preparatory campaign has seen Iga Swiatek participate in the Bad Homburg Open. And the controversy we are talking about? It happened in the R16 match between Swiatek and Azarenka.

The Tennis Letter shared the hot update on their X handle, in which a clip of 47 seconds was shared. The caption read: “Victoria Azarenka to the umpire in her match against Iga Swiatek in Bad Homburg “Every time it’s the same story. As soon as she’s down in the game, she’s taking her time. Like over the time. And you’re not checking. Every time.””

Rule violation allegations are something to be taken seriously. But were the allegations correct? Was Swiatek really pushing the 25-second rule? In a video clip shared, Iga Swiatek was about to serve at 5-4, 15-30 in the game. The 4-time French Open Champion tossed the ball in the air and was about to serve when she let the ball bounce, and she restarted the whole motion to serve. And that flipped Azarenka off.

She immediately let her grievances be known to the Chair umpire as the 2-time Australian Open Champion was visibly frustrated. Azarenka even slammed her hands against her thighs and shook her head in disbelief. While Swiatek stayed out of it, the chair umpire just looked on. However, the fans could feel the heightened emotions as some cheers and claps were heard. Eventually, Azarenka composed herself and continued with the game.

But once the clip was shared on X, the fans came out with their opinions. And most of them are making the same point—not the first time such allegations have been brought against the Polish champion.

Tennis fans feel like there is a pattern with Iga Swiatek

From former tennis Champions to fans, everyone has noticed that Iga Swiatek is not the cleanest tennis player on the circuit. She has been accused of taking extended bathroom breaks after losing the first set or waving her hands to throw the opponents off their game. As for delaying the game to disrupt the rhythm of the opponent, it also falls under the accusations of gamesmanship, something fans have associated Swiatek with. So, one fan went, “Swiatek does this a lot…”

So well-known she has become for her gamesmanship antics that another fan went, “And I didn’t see the match and I know Vika is right.” Well, when 7-time Grand Slam Champion John McEnroe says there’s a problem, maybe we should take notice. In the 2022 US Open, Iga Swiatek was seen not once but twice engaging in one of her habitual actions to disrupt her opponent’s play.

She did it against Lauren Davis in the 3rd round and against Ons Jabeur in the final. Often, when at the net and the opponent has an easy shot to make, Swiatek throws her hands either on her sides or over her head to disturb the opponent’s concentration. Sometimes they fail to make the easy shot; sometimes they prevail, nonetheless. But it can be deemed a hindrance and an offense.

She did something similar in the 2022 San Diego Open against Donna Vekic in the final. Such actions can be deemed as taking a shortcut or an underhanded way to get the win, not the way a true Champion gets her win. So, one fan commented on Azarenka’s complaints: “Iga is a gamer, Vika is right.  Dirty player not a fan.”

In fact, Swiatek even apologized on X after the San Diego win. “And congrats @DonnaVekic for your amazing run! And sorry for waving my hands at the net.” This is what McEnroe had to say about Iga Swiatek’s hand gestures. “I don’t know about that. I don’t think that’s legal…that is a little bit below the belt.” Well, if it is so, isn’t it the Chair Umpire’s duty to penalize such infringements?

The Umpires have the right to penalize time violations by awarding the point to the perpetrator’s opponents. If Swiatek was committing time violations, a simple first-time warning followed by a point penalty would have been the right course of action. But Azarenka was upset the Umpire was allegedly ignoring Swiatek’s mistakes repeatedly. So this fan joined in with his support for the Belarusian: “Totally agree.  No consistency with these chair umpires.   Iga does this constantly. 😡”

One tennis enthusiast was so undone by the incident that his/her reaction was, “I hope Iga lost this game.” Well, it was the last game of the match. And after Swiatek won the point, she also won the game to seal the 6-4, 6-4 win. She moves on to the QFs. But one thing’s for sure. This isn’t the last time we’re hearing of gamesmanship issues with Iga Swiatek.