Iga Swiatek reveals she wrote a note of what she wanted to talk about with Rafael Nadal during their first meeting and the Pole is advising all introverts to try this because she believes this is something that is really helpful. Swiatek, the top-ranked player in women’s tennis, grew up watching and idolizing Nadal. Shortly after becoming a Grand Slam champion at the 2020 French Open, then a 19-year-old Swiatek got a chance to meet her idol Nadal for the first time. Swiatek, now 22 years old, says everything went fine during her first meeting with Nadal as the Spaniard didn’t notice anything unusual in her behavior.
Swiatek on meeting Nadal for the first time
“I don’t remember what was on that note. But this was not a unique situation! I did this more often as a teenager. I recommend it to all introverts! If I didn’t know someone, I didn’t know what we could talk about. Now I’m opening up more and more. I wouldn’t want anyone to look at me as a person from another world now. And [Rafael Nadal] thought I had no problems, that everything was perfect with me. Each of us has our own bubble on tour. We let the most important people in. And its interior looks different than you can read in the media,” Swiatek told SportoweFakty. Swiatek, a four-time Grand Slam champion, is now widely considered one of the best players in the game, with many having her as the very best player in women’s tennis. After becoming a great champion in tennis, Swiatek says at the end of the day, athletes like are just humans. “When I watched tennis at the highest level as a child, I thought of it as an unreachable world. Today I am part of it. And I know that the best athletes are only human,” Swiatek said.