La derrota de Coco Gauff ante Barbora Krejcikova en los WTA Finals ha levantado cejas. Gauff parecía imparable antes de este partido, con dos victorias consecutivas en sets corridos. Sin embargo, Krejcikova tenía otros planes.

Un insider polaco, Lech Sidor, criticó la motivación de Gauff en su cuenta de X, diciendo: “Y todo el plan elaborado en la m… @CocoGauff se comportó como una interna en la caja registradora, sin comentarios, solo recuérdame: ¿cuál es su ranking?”.

Mientras tanto, Iga Swiatek no estaba al tanto de que su victoria sobre Kasatkina no le aseguraría un lugar en las semifinales. En la conferencia de prensa posterior al partido, un periodista le preguntó: “¿Sabía que este partido no tendría efecto en su avance a las semifinales?” Swiatek respondió: “¿Qué quieres decir con que no importaba?”.

Gauff, a pesar de su derrota, ha demostrado un rendimiento excepcional en los WTA Finals, con victorias sobre Jessica Pegula y Iga Swiatek. Ahora enfrentará a Aryna Sabalenka en las semifinales.

Después de vencer a Swiatek, Gauff respondió a los críticos, diciendo: “Me gusta probar a la gente que está equivocada y dejar que mi raqueta hable. Utilizo las críticas como motivación.”

¿Crees que Coco Gauff puede silenciar a los críticos ganando el título en los WTA Finals? Comparte tus pensamientos en los comentarios.

Before the start of the WTA Finals, Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka were backed to make it to the summit clash. And Sabalenka even sailed through the round-robin stage to solidify those expectations, even though she later faltered in the semifinals against Coco Gauff. Nonetheless, the Belarusian star had an amazing year as she claimed 2 Grand Slam titles, apart from a few other titles on the Tour. A contrast to her form almost 2 years ago, when she was unable to dig deep to leave her mark on the court. However, through special help from Dr. Piotr Krężałek, Sabalenka turned things around for herself. Will Iga Swiatek also leverage the brains ofv the Polish biomechanics expert to improve her game?

 Dr. Piotr Krezalek, from the Academy of Physical Education in Krakow, Poland opened up about the reason behind Sabalenka’s improvement in 2 years from making 20 double faults in a match to serving brilliantly now. He credited the science of biomechanics with the improvements. He said, “Biomechanics are of great importance in every sport. And especially at the highest level, where it’s about tightening a small screw, about adding something extra to a champion-level athlete, about adding a little element that the competition doesn’t have.”

Rightly so, at the highest level, athletes have their basics on tips and just need minor adjustments to reach another level. Moreover, Dr. Krezalek further explained the “tightening of screws” with the help of the famous book, “Atomic Habits” which leveraged Great Britain’s cycling team to highlight how small changes brought far-reaching results. He further added, “There’s the aforementioned coach, who took care of the cycling team in Great Britain and raised its level a lot, thanks to the fact that he started paying attention to details, to trifles that seemed insignificant at first glance, and after adding up gave a great effect – the team improved its quality a lot.”

When we take Swiatek’s season into account, the Pole star had a tough year. She won the Roland Garros title, yet again, but faltered to prove her mettle on any other surface during the Grand Slam. And had to settle for a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics. Moreover, the Pole star was unable to find her rhythm back in the 2nd half of the season, which culminated in an early exit from the WTA Finals. How can she regain her dominating form? Dr. Krezalek thinks that his department can be helpful to Swiatek in transforming her game and achieving the next level. He said, “Of course, there would be an opportunity for Iga to use our help.”�

Will Iga Swiatek take up Dr Krezalek’s offer or not is something that the player will have to decide during the off-season, as she gets ready for the 2025 season. However, if we take her performance in the WTA Finals into account, where the Pole star landed herself in a do-or-die situation, Swiatek certainly needs to make a few adjustments to get back on track.

A first time for everything: How did Iga Swiatek feel ahead of a do-or-die match in Riyadh?

It’s unusual for Iga Swiatek to fight for survival at a tournament. However, the former World No.1 found herself in a tough situation at the WTA Finals. Swiatek was unable to breeze through the round-robin stage. The Pole star lost against Coco Gauff in the group stage, and although she beat Barbora Krejcikova, she needed another win to make it to the semifinals of the tournament. Swiatek’s last match was against Daria Kasatkina and it was truly a do-or-die scenario for the former World No. 1.

Narrating her do-or-die dilemma, Swiatek said, “Honestly, this will be the first time I’ve been in this situation. It’s something new, and it’s definitely exciting.” However the circumstances became a roadblock in Swiatek’s journey. She ended up beating Kasatkina, but Coco Gauff couldn’t rise to the occasion against Barbora Krejcikova, as the Czech star defeated her to make her way to the semis.

 

It’s not just at the Riyadh, Iga Swiatek struggled during the US Open too. And withdrew from the Asian swing to recover and regroup for the year-end tournament. In addition to this, the former World No.1 changed her coach, as she collaborated with Wim Fissette. With Fissette, Swiatek might now be looking for a change to shine on other surfaces and not just slay. But would she take help from Dr Krezalek to aid her efforts as well? Only time will tell!

La polaca Iga Swiatek ha creado una marca sostenible y valiosa en el mundo del tenis, según un ejecutivo de Forbes. Su patrimonio neto de $26 millones refleja su dominio en la pista y su atractivo para los patrocinadores.

Swiatek ha logrado victorias destacadas en el circuito y ha llevado laureles a su país después de ganar la medalla de bronce en los Juegos Olímpicos este año. A pesar de una temporada irregular en 2024, la ex número uno del mundo ha construido una marca personal fuerte basada en valores como la dedicación, la determinación, la autenticidad y la modestia.

“Iga ha estado en la cima del tenis mundial durante años, garantizando una calidad de juego alta y apariciones regulares en los torneos más importantes”, afirmó Monika Bondarowicz, directora de la agencia QWinners de marketing deportivo en Forbes. “Iga ha construido una marca personal fuerte, basada en valores que atraen a patrocinadores que quieren asociarse con su éxito y imagen positiva”.

Gracias a sus actuaciones consistentes a nivel mundial, Swiatek cuenta con patrocinadores como Rolex, Porsche, Lancome y On Running, y se estima que ganará $26 millones solo en acuerdos de marca este año.

La polaca supera incluso a su compatriota y futbolista Robert Lewandowski en el ranking anual de “Sportspro” en términos de potencial de mercado.

Sin embargo, en cuanto a sus esfuerzos en la pista, Swiatek ha terminado su temporada. También anunció que no asistirá a la despedida de Rafael Nadal en la Copa Davis.

“Estoy programada para vacaciones”, dijo Swiatek en una rueda de prensa. “Será imposible asistir, ya que los boletos están agotados. Tal vez lo veré por televisión, pero ya tuve la oportunidad de enviarle un mensaje a Rafa y agradecerle por todo lo que ha hecho”.

Con ningún compromiso a nivel de gira en vista, Swiatek probablemente se relajará después de una temporada irregular y se preparará para mejorar su rendimiento en 2025.