'For me he's above everybody, he's a total legend...' - Iga Swiatek opens up on drawing comparisons with Rafael Nadal ahead of final showdown at Roland Garros 2024

Tennis star Iga Swiatek has opened up about drawing comparisons with King of Clay Rafael Nadal. Notably, Nadal has been one of the most successful players in the history of the French Open 2024, having won the title 14 times in his great career. However, the Spaniard suffered a shocking defeat against Alexander Zverev in the opening round of Roland Garros 2024.

On the other hand, world number one Iga Swaitek recently outclassed third-seed  Coco Gauff in the epic semi-final clash and set her match against Paolini, who also defeated Mirra Andreeva in another semi-final game. The Polish star has won the French Open in 2022 and 2023, and she will be hoping to bag her third consecutive title in the final match.

However, Iga feels that she should not get compared to  Rafael Nadal, as he has been the legend of the game, having won the title around 14 times, while Iga just has three tiles of Paris to her name. The 23-year-old revealed that she aims to match the level of the Spaniard with her consistency.

“We’ll see in 14 years if the journey is similar. I mean, that’s nice for me. I would never expect anybody to compare me to Rafa, because for me he’s above everybody and he’s a total legend. Yeah, as I said, we’ll see in a couple of years. But I’m proud of myself that I’m playing consistently here and that I’m mentioned in the same sentence as Rafa. That’s cool," Swiatek said after the win in the semis.

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With the roof open and the sun, the ball bounces a little bit higher: Iga Swiatek

Meanwhile, Iga Swiatek also opened up about her tactics and pragmatic skills, which helped her win the matches.

“The surface makes my game better. My grip allows me to spin more. I can play more defence points because it’s a bit slower, but on the other hand, I have also more time to attack sometimes. So I feel like I’m just using it well. With the roof open and the sun, the ball bounces a little bit higher,” she added further.

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