Iga Swiatek’s coaching change has come as a surprise to many including members of the Tennis Podcast.

The 23-year-old has not featured on the WTA Tour since the US Open quarter-finals and her team will look different when she does make a return to action.

Tennis pundit discusses Iga Swiatek splitting with coach Tomasz Wiktorowski

Iga Swiatek form somewhat dipped after winning her fourth French Open title in June.

She suffered another early exit from Wimbledon and claimed the bronze medal at the Olympic Games, despite being the heavy favourite for the gold medal.

After making the Cincinnati Open semi-finals she exited Flushing Meadows at the last eight stage, and decided it was time for a change.

The timing of the announcement was an interesting one, and many were left surprised by the decision, including The Tennis Podcast’s David Law.

“I don’t know whether this was on the cards whether they decided between them that three years is enough or maybe he’s burnt out, but why wouldn’t you wait just until the end of your year to do this rather than have to miss tournaments,” he said.

“It does feel like it’s come a bit out of the blue. I know she hasn’t won everything she’s wanted to this year but she still had some significant success.

“To make a change like this when you’re still not at the end of the season and then taking tournaments out in order to find your new coach and work things out, that is a bit of a surprise to me.”

Will Iga Swiatek play again before the WTA Finals?

Swiatek has secured her place at the season-ending WTA Finals, and she is the only player to do so along with Aryna Sabalenka so far.

But given her previous announcements, there is a chance she may not play again until the season concludes in Riyadh this November.

Swiatek is the WTA Finals defending champion after the Pole won the event for the first time in 2023 when it was hosted in Cancun, Mexico.

Should the five-time Grand Slam winner compete, she will aim to become the eighth woman to successfully defend the WTA Finals crown.

Iga Swiatek‘s shocking coaching split has left fans wondering what’s next. The highly successful partnership between the WTA star and Tomasz Wiktorowski concluded after the former bagged four Grand Slam titles, among other accolades, under the Polish coach’s tutelage. With updates on hiring a suitable replacement still lacking, a French journalist has reflected on the potential reason behind the Pole’s surprising decision.

Let’s not kid ourselves—the competitiveness of the WTA Tour isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. While players’ stress can be managed off-court, gaining better insight into improving mental fortitude always takes priority. (Drumroll)—enter mental coaches. These individuals are exclusively equipped to guide athletes in better compartmentalizing high-octane emotions when competing on the circuit. Noting their monumental contributions to the sporting world, journalist Remi Bourrieres showered high praise upon Swiatek’s mental coach.

Talking to ‘Sport.pl’ for an interview, Bourrieres highlighted key details surrounding Swiatek’s psychologist, Daria Abramovich. Later, the Frenchman outlined Abramovich’s pivotal role in the Pole’s training, suggesting that the duo’s constructive chemistry could have caused the World No. 1 to drift away from Tomasz Wiktorowski as a coach. For those unaware, the young talent has often relied on her psychologist’s expertise. Notably, her former coach also emphasized the importance of mental wellness and recovery during their partnership.

He said, “Daria Abramovich has a good image in France, where she is perceived solely as a mental coach. In France, we have a growing admiration for good mental coaches, because we know that this is an area where French tennis players need to improve. Perhaps her role has grown a lot in recent months and maybe this has started to weigh on Tomasz. I have seen quite a few interviews with Daria in the French media, less with Tomasz.”

However, the Pole bid adieu to her ex-coach with full honors. The duo parted ways amicably, with Swiatek heaping praise upon Wiktorowski’s efforts and guidance during their fruitful journey.

Iga Swiatek credits former coach Tomasz Wiktorowski for guiding her to glory

Polish superstar Iga Swiatek ended her successful run with Tomasz Wiktorowski merely a fortnight ago. While experts like Barbara Schett validated the Pole’s decision, lamenting over Swiatek’s underwhelming results outside of the French Open, the World No. 1 paid her dues to Wiktorowski in full.

A massive void was created in the coaching staff of Iga Swiatek after the Polish star announced the end of her partnership with Tomasz Wiktorowski, her fellow countryman. Despite working for years together and finding immense success, the end was imminent with Swiatek losing her form. While announcing this change, Swiatek also revealed that she is looking at a foreign coach to replace Wiktorowski. However, with the search continuing, a shocking name has emerged as Swiatek’s potential next coach.

According to several reports, it is rumored that Swiatek will be coached by the likes of Tomek Moczek and Dawid Celt, who also happens to be the husband of the former World Number 2, Agnieszka Radwańska. Additionally, Celt is also the captain of the Polish team for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals. But if Celt works with Swiatek at the WTA Finals in Riyadh, he could face a major scheduling hurdle, with the Billie Jean King Cup Final not far away. While the WTA Finals ends on November 9, the BJK Cup Final commences on November 13.

“I am currently in initial talks with non-Polish coaches as I prepare to take the next step in my career. I’ll update you once I’ve made my choice,” Swiatek said while announcing her separation from Wiktorowski. Among the possible names that resurfaced to replace Wiktorowski were the likes of Brad Gilbert and Wim Fissette, who are Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka’s ex-coaches, respectively. However, with the search going on, the rumors suggest Swiatek might appoint Tomek Moczek or Dawid Celt as her interim coach for this season.

Many tennis experts have expressed concerns about how things ended between Swiatek and Wiktorowski. Despite a successful partnership, it was a sudden end, which not many would have foreseen. In addition to that, a Polish tennis expert also expressed concerns about Swiatek’s game.

Tennis expert calls the game of Iga Swiatek as ‘One Dimensional’

While there is no doubt that Swiatek has been a force to reckon with on clay courts, her game drops on the hard and grass courts. Interestingly, she has won 4 clay-court Grand Slam titles and just a solitary hard-court major title. She hasn’t been able to get beyond the quarterfinals at the Wimbledon Championships, highlighting her struggles on grass. As a result, tennis expert, Tomasz Wolfke, expressed concern about her game.

Wolfke said, “We don’t really know what happened in this team, but three years of cooperation in tennis is such a completely normal period, and during this period Iga and Tomek achieved stunning success together. However, recently there have been reservations about Iga’s playing style. I even always said in an open text that her tennis is too one-dimensional, but you can’t have a grudge against her either, because there is also a tennis school that says that we practice painfully what we do best and beat everyone with these two or three strokes, just like in the case of Iga.”

Amid these turbulent times, Swiatek will look to come back strongly as she aims to win back-to-back WTA Finals titles. She has skipped the Asian Swing of the WTA Tour due to personal reasons and a comeback at the WTA Finals in Riyadh remains likely.