Women’s tennis world number one Iga Swiatek will not take part in the Billie Jean King Cup as the competition is scheduled to start immediately after the WTA Finals Fort Worth, which will be held in Texas.
“I am disappointed that the governing bodies of tennis did not reach an agreement on something as important as the tournament calendar, giving us only one day to travel and change the time zone. This situation is not safe for our health and can cause injuries”, wrote Iga Swiatek on social networks.
The WTA Finals, which close the women’s tennis season and feature the world’s top eight in singles and doubles, are in Fort Worth, Texas, from October 31 to November 7, and the Billie Jean King Cup team competition, organized by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), will be held in Glasgow (Scotland) from November 8 to 13.
The 21-year-old Polish tennis player has dominated women’s tennis in recent months. She is a three-time Grand Slam champion, and in 2022 she won the French Open in June and the US Open in September. She thus became the first woman since 2016 to win two Grand Slam titles in one season.
This week Iga Swiatek will compete at the WTA 500 Ostrava Open (Czech Republic), and so far this season she has recorded 57 wins, only 7 losses, and won seven titles. She went on a 37-match winning streak from February to July that was the WTA’s longest in a quarter of a century and helped her win six straight titles.
Iga Swiatek also said that she came to the decision not to participate in the Billie Jean King Cup after “thinking it over and talking it over with her team”.
The other 11 countries that will play in the team competition are Australia, Belgium, Great Britain, Canada, Czech Republic, Italy, Kazakhstan, Spain, Slovakia, Switzerland, and the USA.
Currently, the other players in position to qualify for the WTA Finals whose countries will participate in the Billie Jean King Cup are No 4 Paula Badosa (Spain), No 6 Jessica Pegula (USA) and No 8 Cori Coco Gauff (USA).
“I’m very sorry because I play for Poland whenever possible and I always give my best”, added Iga Swiatek. She said she planned to “talk to the WTA and the ITF to change something”. “This situation is difficult not only for players like me, but mainly for tennis fans who support our sport”, said also Iga Swiatek
The ITF president David Haggerty said he regretted Iga Swiatek’s decision not to take part in the team competition and acknowledged that “the schedule for the two major tournaments at the end of the year presents a challenge for the female tennis players who participate in both”.
“We have been working with the WTA to try to work out suitable dates”, said David Haggerty, adding that the ITF had changed the schedule of the Billie Jean King Cup finals so that teams like Poland and the United States would start as late as possible. “We are committed to working with the WTA on the 2023 program to ensure a smooth transition between the two competitions”, added David Haggerty.
