Iga Swiatek will make sure she plays with “extra focus” as she makes her Billie Jean King Cup Finals debut for Poland against host country Spain. She is expected to battle against Paula Badosa, the top-ranked player from Spain, in the opening round of the competition.
Swiatek admitted: “It’s not the first time I’m playing somebody who is going to have the whole audience behind them…It’s not going to be easy and I will need an extra focus. I’m going to focus on my tennis first, because playing against Paula is always a challenge. I’ll prepare tactically because we haven’t played in a while.”
With just one tournament since the US Open, Swiatek should be relatively fresh for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals. She lost two of her three matches in the WTA Finals, which led to her elimination at the event.
Meanwhile, Badosa has been in impressive form in the second part of the season after suffering a back injury earlier this year and hinted that she might not have much time left in the sport. With her comeback, Badosa will surely have the support of a passionate home crowd in Malaga.
When asked about Badosa’s comeback to the top, Swiatek said: “I was actually looking at her journey and I was kind of worried if she was going to be able to come back, because obviously her injuries weren’t easy and smooth, and sometimes she tried, but it wasn’t working.”
“So honestly, I was super happy to see her back playing her tennis in these tournaments, at the US Open, and plenty of others. She’s a really, really nice person, and I felt like she’s really pushing to be back,” she added.
In the Billie Jean King Cup Finals last year, Spain and Poland also faced off, with Spain emerging victorious in the competition.
Source: Eurosport