AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 19, 2026

Iga Swiatek

Press Conference

I. SWIATEK/Yuan Yue

7-6, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Iga, it was a nice, close two-setter to get your campaign underway. How did you feel on the court tonight?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, I guess there were some moments where I felt great, but the start of the match wasn't that perfect. I'm happy that I worked through this and could, yeah, finish in two sets as you said. Also during tiebreak, like, play more, yeah, aggressively and more precise I guess.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Could you please comment on your opponent's performance today.

IGA SWIATEK: Yeah, I think she played well. She used the opportunities that I gave her a bit. Yeah, was kind of playing pretty strong from the forehand side. She was for sure going for her shots, playing fast. Yeah, she played good.

Q. You had some interchanges with Wim during the middle of the match. Were those certain strategy thoughts?

IGA SWIATEK: I mean, I think both. Like, one was more strategy and tactical, but the other was more technical. It was a mix, as usual.

Q. How are you finding the balance these days between being really aggressive and also being patient, waiting for the right shot, making the right decision?

IGA SWIATEK: Well, it's not only up to me. It's also up to the opponent and how she plays. When I have the chance, I will always try to be proactive and go for the shots. I don't want to, like, push or something. When I have a chance, I'll go for it.

When she plays also super aggressively, it's not like we can both do it at the same time. So for me the balance is using my opportunities, like pushing.

But, for sure, in tennis you're going to be in both situations, so you kind of need to adjust to what also comes from the other side of the net.

Q. A couple opponents of yours from the past. Alex Eala, she's had huge fandom around the grounds here. What do you make of her as a player? Also if you've noticed the level of popularity she's had?

IGA SWIATEK: Yeah, I mean, like, I haven't seen it live, how people react. But for sure she's a nice person and I think personality-wise she also deserves to be supported I guess because she has all the good qualities.

Also, like, I guess coming from a smaller country, you will be kind of bigger because it's not like they have many athletes that they can look up to, I guess. Not sure.

Her game style is pretty different I would say, with change of rhythm, a lot of slices, a lot of shots that she can surprise with. Yeah, I guess she can for sure sometimes use that as a surprise.

Q. The second player is Eva Lys, who you have played before. What have you seen of her development on court and what you make of her as a person?

IGA SWIATEK: For sure she plays nice. She has a good technique, I guess. Also in United Cup she kind of went for it, as well. She can play at the high pace.

For sure she's also a nice person off the court. She's pretty funny with everything that she does on Instagram. It's really refreshing. And it's nice to see that. Also she seems not to give a damn what people talk about. She's just doing her thing, which is nice to see.

Yeah, I like both of them, so... Good choices.

Q. A Taylor Swift question. When the album Life of a Showgirl came out in the fall, you really, really liked it. There was some criticism of it in the weeks following. Did the album hold up for you?

IGA SWIATEK: Yeah, I like it. Honestly, people are going to criticize everything, so... I think it was great. I mean, it's kind of short. It's not like you're going to find some surprising things on it after you listened to it couple of times. The songs are catchy. That's what she wanted. That's what she said from the beginning. She achieved the goal she wanted. Every song is a hit on this album.

But yeah, I guess you can find different stuff in art and music. If some people have different expectations and they look at an album like that, they will always find something to criticize.

Yeah, I like it.

Q. Has your favorite song changed?

IGA SWIATEK: Honestly, it's hard to pick because she keeps the level high. The whole album is kind of consistent. I like Elizabeth Taylor, but I wouldn't say it's much higher in my rank than other in terms of the likability.

Q. You've got a winning record against most players. When a winning record starts to change, you've lost the last few to Coco, how much does that play on your mind?

IGA SWIATEK: Honestly, it doesn't. Also when I was winning against her, it didn't. That's why I guess it was possible for me to continue, because I wasn't taking it for granted, or I don't know, coming to a match unfocused.

I guess it kind of tells you something more about maybe the game or things you should work on or improve because, you know, also she improved. So yeah, but the head-to-head I guess doesn't really matter. Maybe for her, if you ask her the same question, it's different.

But I guess I just really want to treat every match as a separate story. Every match also is in different conditions. So there's no point to, like, always come back and...

Last time we played was Madrid. Also it was over six months. It's kind of long in tennis life. It's not like a whole story for me. It's more about how I feel that month or that week and how she feels, how we're going to play against each other. That's it.

Q. You've had some very easy first-round matches, or you made them look easy, and then you had a tight one like tonight. Do you have a preference starting off a tournament?

IGA SWIATEK: I mean, you never know. Like, if you play four three-setters, you're body is going to feel that. If you play easy matches, then suddenly you get a challenge, you might get rusty, like, in the middle of the tournament and feel the pressure.

I've had both situations. More often it was me winning quite comfortably the first rounds. But also I remember many tournaments where it was tough from the beginning.

Doesn't matter to overanalyze it. Just you got to be ready for the next match and take lessons from why the match was kind of tighter, and try to improve stuff for the next round.