Iga Swiatek shared some huge praise for Rafael Nadal as she explains how their playing styles are similar.
The 23-year-old grew up idolizing the Spaniard and has named him as her biggest inspiration within the sport and her favourite player.
It is clear to see how the 22-time Grand Slam champion has influenced her game given Iga Swiatek’s levels of intensity and heavy groundstrokes.
But the World number two has now provided some insight into how she believes her game mirrors that of the 14-time French Open champion.
How did Iga Swiatek compare her game to Rafael Nadal’s?
Rafael Nadal developed a reputation for using high amounts of topspin with acute angels to drag his opponents out of position and wear them down.
Swiatek also implements topspin into her game and in addition to using her excellent footwork to move up the court quickly and take control of the rallies, hallmarks of Nadal’s game.
Swiatek has been compared to Nadal in terms of their dominance at Roland Garros, where they hold a combined 18 titles.
But during an interview with The Athletic, The Pole explained how they are similar from the perspective on how they played the game.
“It’s just physics. On clay, it’s going to be a bit easier because my topspin will jump higher and my movements will be maybe better than what other girls can bring with the sliding and changing direction,” Swiatek said.
“But on hard courts, I feel like I’m a good player as well. It was the same with Rafa.”
Iga Swiatek makes a bold Rafael Nadal claim
Early in his career Nadal’s detractors did not believe he could achieve plenty of success away from clay courts.
But the 38-year-old proved his doubters wrong by succeeding on every surface, winning multiple titles on grass and hard courts, inducing the Wimbledon, the Australian Open and the US Open.
After showing he could adapt to all surfaces throughout his career, Swiatek called Nadal the greatest of all time on all surfaces.
“Everybody always talked about clay, but like he’s the GOAT (greatest of all time) basically on every surface,” she added. “Also winning Wimbledon twice. Not every player can have these results on even one surface.
“This is something that people are focusing on, and I am talking about this as well, because clay is where I have the most fun, but I love hard courts as well.
“And I feel like I have my weapons and I can use them. I want to be an all surface player for sure.”
