Iga Swiatek’s split with her long-time coach, Tomasz Wiktorowski has now become the talk of the town. Not just in the tennis world, but also across different sports! Wiktorowski joined Swiatek’s team in 2021 and within this span of three years, he ensured Swiatek clinched four Grand Slam titles. His contributions to helping her become world number one are quite enormous. So, his departure seems a bit shocking to some! However, others feel it was the right time to make a bold call. Recently, a local Polish soccer club was seen taking a swipe at Iga Swiatek amid her coaching saga.

GKS Katowice, a soccer club currently competing in the Ekstraklasa in the 2024-25 season, was taking on Puszcza Niepołomice on Friday (October 4). In that match, GieKSa defeated Niepolomice by 6-0. This was their third consecutive victory, and shortly after this emphatic triumph, they shared a hilarious note with Poland’s tennis star, Iga Swiatek. They tweeted, “@iga_swiatek we know that 6:0 is impressive, but coach Górak is unbeatable.” GKS Katowice’s current coach, Rafal Gorak, has been with them since 2019. Currently, the team is sitting at the 8th spot in the table. They have won four matches, drawn three, and lost four.

So, the future of this coach looks quite safe as of now! However, things perhaps were a bit different for Tomasz Wiktorowski after the 2024 French Open. Iga Swiatek has struggled to bring out her A-game on the grass and hard court surfaces this year. Is this one of the main factors that played a crucial role in her bold call? We don’t know, but Swiatek did pen down a heartfelt note for her ex-coach while making this announcement. 

Iga Swiatek’s heartfelt note on IG: “After 3 years of the greatest achievements in my career, together with my coach Tomasz Wiktorowski we decided to part way. I want to start with a big thank you and appreciating our work together.” Wiktorowski won the WTA’s Coach of the Year in 2023. It has truly been a remarkable 3 years for both Swiatek and Wiktorowski! Speaking on Wiktoroski’s contributions over the years, she said, “His experience, analytical and strategic attitude, and enormous knowledge about tennis helped us to achieve things I’ve never dreamed of only a few months after we started working together.“

She further added, “Our main goal was to become No.1 player in the world and, coach Wiktorowski was the one who said it first. We aimed very high, we headed to every tournament with a clear goal to win it.” Iga Swiatek is clearly satisfied with the journey she had with her ex-coach, but perhaps some recent developments might have added fuel to the fire. What could be the reason?

Tennis experts share mixed reactions on Iga Swiatek’s split with Tomasz Wiktorowski

Iga Swiatek has revealed that she’s currently looking for a non-Polish coach, but what might have led her to take this bold decision of splitting with her long-time coach? Well, according to the former Austrian pro-Barbara Schett, “She still wants to develop her game outside of clay. She is looking for something different, an outside look because at this level, every % counts. She needs a different pair of eyes and different stimulations. Can develop her game even more.”

We all know that to have a strong partnership, there needs to be stronger chemistry between the two. However, interestingly, according to an insider’s report on Sport.pl, Iga Swiatek had “no special chemistry” with Tomasz Wiktorowski. The report claims, “He became nervous, used offensive words, and more and more often he treated Iga harshly, such as in New York. He also led a completely different lifestyle than Iga. Less sporty, let’s call it that.” Some others have brought in a completely different perspective about the involvement of Swiatek’s psychologist in this decision.

Renowned Polish journalist, Romer, said, “I’m not surprised” because he felt that the situation surrounding Iga Swiatek after the US Open was quite “exceptional.” While other journalists, like Ben Rothenberg, snubbed the idea of an immediate requirement for a chance in Swiatek’s coaching team. What are your thoughts on this split, though?