You know how they say a good craftsman never blames their tools? Well, Iga Swiatek’s 2025 is really testing that theory, isn’t it? She’s been right on the edge of victory, like, everywhere. First, that nail-biter of a semi-final at the Australian Open against Madison Keys, who ended up taking the whole thing. Then, she was cruising in Qatar, but boom, Jelena Ostapenko, her kryptonite with that 5-0 head-to-head, stops her cold. And just when you think Dubai’s her chance to turn it around, bam! Seventeen-year-old Mirra Andreeva comes out swinging and just completely upsets her, 6-3, 6-3, in the quarters. Seriously, what’s going on with Iga? It’s like she’s hit a wall, and you’ve got to wonder if it’s just a rough patch or something more.

Swiatek wasn’t the only high seed to make an early exit. The Dubai draw turned upside down for top-ranked players, with World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka losing to Clara Tauson in the second round and No.3 Coco Gauff following suit after falling to compatriot McCartney Kessler. They each have their own thing going on.

Sabalenka pointed to a lack of motivation for her loss, saying she didn’t feel “hungry” enough on court. Gauff, meanwhile, has been struggling with her serve and forehand, issues that have haunted her before as well. What’s Swiatek’s reasoning?

Iga Swiatek, visibly frustrated, didn’t hold back when asked, “In general, this month we can see from the results a lot of the top seeds have not necessarily performed the way they used to. Is that a calendar thing? Is that the trickiness of having back-to-back 1000s? Can you see a theme?” 

“For sure it’s a calendar thing,” the World No.2 said in her post-match press conference. “Like, we’re not going to be able to be consistent for many years playing week by week. Also, it’s not like some time ago that outside of, like, top-20 players, they were just getting destroyed more. Now anybody can win these tournaments. It is like that since couple of years. But I feel like for sure the calendar is not helping. Again, like, we need to switch continents, we need to switch surfaces, we need to switch the balls. Yeah, it’s not easy. I’m not surprised.”

Back in 2024, the world No. 2 called the schedule “exhausting,” and argued that players should have more control over their tournament commitments. After the US Open, she spoke candidly about the toll it takes: “There are people saying that, ‘Oh, I don’t have to play so many tournaments,’ but…the fact is that we have so many mandatory tournaments that we literally need to show up, and we don’t have time to work on stuff or live peacefully, because from one tournament we’re going straight to another…the season is, for sure, too long.”

Her frustration with the loss was particularly visible after her loss.

Iga Swiatek snubs coach Will Fissette after shocking loss

Iga Swiatek has yet to lift another trophy since winning in May 2024 at the French Open. Her coaching change last October saw her replace longtime mentor Tomasz Wiktorowski with Wim Fissette.

After just one month of the new coach arriving at her camp, the World No.2 tested positive for TMZ, a banned substance she ingested from a contaminated sleeping pill she took for insomnia and jet-lag. While she was cleared by the International Tennis Federation, the Pole had to serve a one month suspension for negligence. Fisette stood by her during these tough times as he was “sure of her innocence from the beginning.”

While she’s made deep runs by reaching the semifinals at the Australian Open and Qatar Open, losses to lower-ranked opponents like Madison Keys and Jelena Ostapenko have raised questions. After her defeat to Andreeva, the Pole’s emotions were on full display.

She walked straight to the locker room without acknowledging her team and even skipped the customary post-match handshake with Fissette. This moved raised many eyebrows and had fans questioning her behaviour.

The World No. 2 now turns her attention to Indian Wells, where she’ll defend her BNP Paribas Open title from March 2-16. Last year, she dominated the field, defeating Maria Sakkari in the final. Can she bounce back and reclaim her winning ways?