The tennis world is highly anticipating the upcoming grass-court major. To satisfy the craving for action and discussion, the authorities dropped the drawing table today, giving fans an idea of the possible showdowns in the upcoming event. While Iga Swiatek is currently preparing herself for a transition to grass, she was introduced with a scare that Coco Gauff had to experience last year.

According to the recently released draws, top seed Iga Swiatek is set to start her run with a confirmed showdown against American star Sofia Kenin. This initial battle could possibly spell trouble for the Roland Garros champion as Kenin is known for her surprise comebacks.

Back in 2023, Gauff had an impressive run at the French Open. She made it to the quarterfinals and therefore lost to Swiatek. While everyone expected a notable position for her at Wimbledon as well, she faced a tough first-round match at Wimbledon against Kenin, which unexpectedly ended in a setback for the 20-year-old.

Sofia Kenin’s performance last year at Wimbledon was worth paying attention to. After defeating Gauff, she swiftly made it to the third round, where she secured a straight-sets victory over China’s Wang Xinyu.

On the other hand, Iga Swiatek made it to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon last year. She was defeated by Elina Svitolina in a challenging match that ended 7-5, 6-7 (7-5), 6-2, a defeat that came out as another shock for the fans. Their head-to-head record places the Pole in a lead with two victories over nil of the American rival.

While it is her against the ‘dark horse’ of 2023, it still remains to be seen if the world no.1 is lucky enough to surpass the challenge. However, this isn’t the first time when Iga Swiatek has started her grand slam run against Sofia Kenin.

Iga Swiatek finds the R1 situation against Sofia Kenin “pretty weird”

Iga Swiatek has a fine history with Sofia Kenin. During her run for the Roland Garros title back in 2020, Sofia Kenin stood as a tough hurdle. The American took down Petra Kvitova in the semi-finals to be in an encounter against the Pole. While her grip on clay makes it hard to beat her, Kenin failed to secure a win and therefore ended up in the runner-up position.

After almost four years, Swiatek once again crossed paths with Kenin. She was set to start her run against the American and that was when she realised how things had changed. “I mean, it kind of strikes me sometimes that we played my first Grand Slam final was against Sofia and now we’re playing in the first round. It’s pretty weird. That’s how our life journeys kind of went apart,” she said, during an interview in Melbourne.

It is time for Iga Swiatek to be ready to hold her racket once again. While she has kept herself out for preparations after extensive hustles on grass, it still remains to be seen how long will it take for her to build a grip on grass.