“I’m just gonna try to do my job and focus on just getting progress and learning new stuff on grass right now,” said a dejected Iga Swiatek after her shocking French Open exit. The Pole had been the defending champion in Paris for three years straight and had, in fact, won the trophy four times. But her struggles with her form in 2025 eventually affected her clay court campaign. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka dominated in the semifinal, and just like that, Swiatek’s 26-match win streak ended in Paris. But there’s still a chance for her to make a solid comeback at Wimbledon, right? Well, not really, according to an ex-WTA icon, CoCo Vandeweghe.

Throughout this season, Swiatek has failed to turn her promising runs into title triumphs. Back at the Australian Open, she reached the semis but lost in a 3-set thriller to the eventual winner, Madison Keys. The same was the case in Doha, Indian Wells, Madrid, and then the French Open. The worrying part? Swiatek’s yet to win a single title in 2025. Whether it’s hard court or clay, she’s struggled to lift any trophy. And now the grass season awaits. The Pole is set to kick off her grass campaign ahead of Wimbledon at the Bad Homburg Open on Tuesday.

But going by CoCo Vandeweghe’s early verdict, it seems Swiatek’s chances are bleak. During an episode of the Tennis Channel live podcast, when asked if Swiatek needs to make any adjustments, the ex-pro replied, “Well, there is, but there’s no time to change it right now. I think she could use definitely more of a close stance forehand. I think that could help her with that extreme grip.” She continued, “I think everything just sits up when it comes to Iga’s game because of the heavy topspin that she implements, not only on her forehand, but also on her serve. It’s more of a kick serve or a topspin serve, both first and second. So, on the grass, that’s just going to sit up.”

However, she added that Swiatek’s forehand issue remains unresolved. “The athleticism gets hampered in that way, because she can’t neutralize the rally soon enough.” Vandeweghe then went on to make a very unexpected prediction. According to her, the Pole may not win the Bad Homburg Open this week.

She only expects her to “get her feet underneath herself. This is just a season where she can pick up points, but I don’t think she is really title hunting as she would on other surfaces where she is expected to win. She is expected for sure to be quarters and semis, but I don’t think to hold the title at the end, I don’t see that happening for Iga.”

Her assessment paints an uncomfortable picture for the 24 year old’s prospects in London. And going by her past record at Wimbledon, her title woes look set to continue.

Iga Swiatek under immense pressure to defy Wimbledon curse

Many will be shocked to know this but Iga Swiatek‘s only failure in her slam career has been the All England Club. In other outings, she’s been successful with a semis run in Australia and winning the titles in Paris and New York. But on the grass in London, she’s just struggled continuously.

Since making her event debut at the Wimbledon, in 2019, the former World No.1 has never gone past the quarterfinals. In the 2023 edition, she made it to the last eight before losing to Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina. The latter ousted her with a score line of 7-5, 6-7, 6-2. And last year, the Pole was knocked out even earlier. In the third round, Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva edged her out with a score line of 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.

During the post-match conference, Swiatek admitted, “For me going from this kind of tennis where I felt like I’m playing the best tennis in my life to another surface where I kind of struggle a little bit more, it’s not easy,” reported WTA’s website in July 2024. “All that stuff really combines to me not really having a good time in Wimbledon.”

In simple words, Wimbledon feels like “a penalty Swiatek is forced to accept for her clay-court supremacy.”  What are your thoughts on the Pole’s chances at the All England Club? Will she succeed this time to defy the longtime curse? Let us know in the comments below.