WIMBLEDON ETHICS: IGA SWIATEK REFUSED TO GIVE ANISIMOVA FREE POINT
Iga Swiatek defends her ruthless 6-0, 6-0 Wimbledon final win over Amanda Anisimova. The World No. 1 reveals she was also "stressed as hell" during the match.
In a recent interview, Iga Swiatek addressed those who thought she should have let Amanda Anisimova win a game in their 2025 Wimbledon final.
A lot of people anticipated a tough match between Swiatek and Anisimova at Wimbledon that year. In a memorable semifinal, the American player beat Aryna Sabalenka in three sets. Sources reported the WTA world No. 1 wasn't happy with Anisimova's behaviour during the match.
But the final didn't live up to the hype. Anisimova seemed really nervous and was defeated 0-6, 0-6. It was the first time a player hadn't won a game in a Wimbledon singles final since 1911.
Swiatek took full advantage of Anisimova's struggles. Since 2020, she's won more sets 6-0 than any other WTA player. This makes her well-suited to quickly beat an opponent who isn't playing well.
Afterwards, many fans felt sorry for Anisimova, who was having a hard time in her first Grand Slam final. Some suggested Swiatek could have given the 24-year-old a game to spare her from total defeat, since she would almost surely have won anyway.
In an interview, Swiatek said she was just trying to concentrate and wasn't thinking about how it looked. She said she only realised how strange the 6-0, 6-0 score was in a Grand Slam final after the match.
I wasn’t really thinking about how it looked; I was just playing, and I didn’t want to give any points for free. “ It’s a Wimbledon final; I really wanted to win it," she said. “After, for sure, there were a lot of crazy things happening. I remember all these interviews about the score, journalists asking questions if I should let Amanda win one game or something like that. It was pretty different.
Swiatek believes the final showed just how important a player's mental state is in tennis. She noted that many people focused on Anisimova's anxiety but didn't realise she was feeling the same way on such a big stage.
I can only say that this tournament shows tennis is such a mental sport. This part of the game has a huge impact on everything and on the results of each player. She stated. I’m really happy I handled the pressure well, because after the final, everybody was talking about Amanda being stressed or something, but I was also stressed as hell; playing the final of Wimbledon on Centre Court is a surreal experience.
Iga Swiatek plans to change her schedule in 2026.
Swiatek has often talked about how long the tennis schedule is and how many mandatory tournaments there are. In 2025, not playing enough of these mandatory events caused Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, and others to lose points.
In an interview, Swiatek said she'll probably skip two tournaments in 2026. These will likely be events where she doesn't normally play well.
I would like to try missing maybe two tournaments—maybe the ones I feel I haven’t been playing well at anyway—just spending this time on grinding and getting the technique better, she said. I think it will help me also play a little bit better under stress, because my body will remember the proper movements and what it learned during this practice time.
SUSPENDED: WHEN EMMA RADUCANU WILL RESUME HER DELAYED MATCH AGAINST CAMILA OSORIO
Emma Raducanu’s Hobart debut is delayed by rain! Leading 6-3, 2-4 against Camila Osorio, see the new Wednesday schedule here.
Emma Raducanu came into the Hobart International on Tuesday looking for her first win of 2026, but the weather had other plans.
She’d lost her last four matches, so getting a wildcard draw against Camila Osorio seemed like the perfect chance to turn things around. Raducanu, the top seed in Hobart, started strong and took the first set with authority. Osorio didn’t just roll over, though—she fought back and grabbed the lead in the second set.
Just as the match started to heat up, rain swept in. They’d gotten as far as 6-2, 2-4 in Raducanu’s favour when organisers called it for the night.
The weather had mostly played along earlier in the day. Stearns, Maria, and Wang Xinyu all managed to collect wins before the clouds really opened up. But by the time Raducanu and Osorio were on court, the rain was relentless. Organisers had no choice but to push their match, and the last one of the day—Selekhmeteva vs. Linette—to Wednesday.
It’s not looking much better for Wednesday, either. The forecast calls for more rain, so delays could keep piling up. Still, as of now, Raducanu and Osorio are set to finish their match as the second game on Centre Court, after Sramkova takes on local wildcard Taylah Preston. Play kicks off at noon local time (that’s 1 am in the UK, or 8 pm Tuesday on the US East Coast). Raducanu and Osorio won’t get going again before 2 pm local time.
Whoever wins faces Magdalena Frech in round two.
But here’s the thing—the rain delay could mean a packed schedule for whoever comes out on top. The second-round match against the French won't be played on Wednesday, so at least there's a bit of breathing room. After that, though, the winner might have to squeeze in round two, the quarterfinals, the semifinals, and the final in just three days.
The Hobart final always lands on Saturday, which gives the finalists a sliver of time to head over to Melbourne for the Australian Open. That kicks off on Sunday, January 18—just a day later. Not much of a break, honestly.
SINCARAZ UNITED: CARLOS ALCARAZ AND JANNIK SINNER TEASE A SHOCK 2026 DOUBLES TEAM-UP FOR FANS
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and No. 2 Jannik Sinner confirm they are open to a "surprise" doubles pairing in 2026. Get the details.
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner aren’t just fierce rivals—they’re friends, too. Even though they’re at the top of the ATP rankings, first and second, they get along really well. Lately, people have started asking if they’ll ever play doubles together.
These two have become the main guys in men’s tennis. They’ve already played each other 16 times, and six of those matches happened after May 2025. They’ve faced off in the last three Grand Slam finals, with Alcaraz winning 10 out of those 16. When Sinner beat Alcaraz at the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadh last October, they both talked about how strong their friendship is, even though they’re always battling on court.
Sinner said, “It’s nice to have a great rivalry and, more importantly, a great friendship off the court. We have a very special friendship, and it’s very nice.”
Alcaraz agreed. “People think when two tennis players are competing for big things, giving their best, they can’t have a great friendship off the court. But I think we’ve shown it’s possible.”
Just last week in Incheon, South Korea, they played again—Alcaraz won a tight exhibition, 7-5, 7-6(6). At a press conference there, someone asked Alcaraz if he’d ever play doubles with Sinner.
“Of course,” Alcaraz said. “But, you know, we’re so focused on singles that it’s tough. If you go deep in singles, you don’t really have time to recover if you’re also playing doubles. But for one tournament? That would be awesome. We’ll talk about it. Maybe this year, maybe next. It’ll be a surprise.”
Sinner, sitting next to him, jumped in: “Yeah, I agree. We’ve never actually talked about it, but it’d be fun—just once—to play on the same side of the net. Again, the singles schedule makes it hard, but we’ll see. Maybe it’ll happen soon.”
Honestly, if these two team up for doubles, fans will lose their minds. Watching the top two players in the world join forces would be something special. Let’s see if they actually pull it off.