World No. 1 Iga Swiatek has become the ninth player in the Open Era to have won three Grand Slam titles before turning 22.
On Saturday, Swiatek defeated Ons Jabeur in the US Open final with a 6-2 7-6 (5) score.
Swiatek, who won the French Open titles in 2020 and 2022, is now 3/3 in three Grand Slam finals.
Swiatek now joins the Williams sisters, Maria Sharapova, Martina Hingis, Justine Henin, Monica Seles, Steffi Graf and Chris Evert on the list of those who have won three Grand Slams before turning 22.
9 – Iga #Swiatek is only the 9th player in the Open Era to win her third Grand Slam title before turning 22 after Maria Sharapova, Justine Henin, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Martina Hingis, Monica Seles, Steffi Graf and Chris Evert. Jewelry.@WTA @WTA_insider #USOpen pic.twitter.com/p0Q55CmI6R
— OptaAce (@OptaAce) September 10, 2022
Swiatek on the ‘pressure is a privilege’ belief
Swiatek, 21, hasn’t lost a set in her first three Grand Slam finals.
Swiatek is absolutely clutch in Grand Slam finals, but she admits she is not really someone that enjoys too much the pressure.
“I wouldn’t say that there is a lot of joy,” Swiatek admitted after the final. “I was actually thinking about that yesterday. The day before the final, I don’t enjoy it at all. I feel like you really have to like adrenaline, you really have to be excited for the whole experience to feel that. But I’m more of a person that is going to have doubts. But when I go on court, I forget about that. I only focus on the things that are going to make me play better and just win points. I realized that if I’m going to win points and I’m going to play well, the stress is going to go away anyway. So, yeah, it’s not easy, but I feel like on court I can just do my job and I’m happy about it, that I kind of can make these doubts go away. Sometimes it’s also hard to do that for, like, the whole season. So for sure in Toronto, Cincinnati I had a lot more doubts.”