Tennis superstar Iga Swiatek has called out double standards in sport after copping backlash for nearly hitting a ball kid during a moment of anger at Indian Wells.
The defending champion fell to 17-year-old sensation Mirra Andreeva in a semi-final overshadowed by the incident.
Swiatek had complained to the chair umpire about apparent movement from the ball kids behind her when she was trying to return Andreeva’s serve.
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Moments later, during her own service game, Swiatek was thrown a ball by a ball kid and smashed it back in his direction.
Luckily, the ball missed the ball kid and bounced into the crowd — but she came under heavy fire from fans.
Swiatek opened up with an Instagram post the day after watching Andreeva lift the trophy with victory in the final over world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka.
“One of my favorite tournaments of the year is behind me. I’m slowly moving in the direction I want and leaving here with solid work done, many good memories, and some valuable lessons,” Swiatek began.
“I see there’s been a lot of recent talk about changes in my on-court behavior and emotions. Although I’m not comfortable explaining myself, it’s time I share my perspective to stop the speculation and baseless theories.”
Swiatek owned up to being “not proud” of “expressing frustration” by hitting the ball back at the ball kid.
“My intention as never to aim the ball at anyone but merely to release my frustration by bouncing it on the ground,” she said.
“I immediately apologised to the ball boy, we made eye contact and nodded to each other when I expressed regret that it happened near him.
“I’ve seen many players bounce balls in frustration and frankly I didn’t expect such harsh judgements.
“Usually I control such impulses, so half-jokingly I can say I lack experience in this and misjudged my aim in the heat of the moment.”
What left Swiatek more aggrieved was how the incident set off a wave of debate around her personality on court.
The 23-year-old said she has changed her mindset in the wake of last year’s controversial doping ban, but the suspension continues to have an impact on her bid to reclaim the world No.1 ranking.
“This realisation deeply upset me. You could see this on the court in Dubai (in February),” she said.
Swiatek said she is still working on “shifting perspective” — and dealing with “constant judgement”.
Swiatek has become a divisive figure at the top of the sport. Credit: AAP “When I’m highly focused and don’t show many emotions on court, I’m called a robot, my attitude labelled as inhuman,” Swiatek said.
“Now that I’m more expressive, showing feelings or struggling internally, I’m suddenly labelled immature or hysterical. That’s not a healthy standard — especially considering that just six months ago, I felt my career was hanging by a thread, spent three weeks crying daily, and didn’t want to step on court.
“Today, after everything I’ve been through, I’m still processing and coming to terms with those experiences.
“Will sharing this change anything? Probably not, because I clearly see how much we love judging, creating theories and imposing opinions on others.
“But perhaps a few people who genuinely want to understand what I’m experiencing will understand this. In any case, this external standard is definitely not my standard, and I don’t accept my team and me being boxed into external expectations.”
Swiatek thanked her “true” supporters and confirmed she will return to the court at the Miami Open this week.
The Indian Wells furore followed two high-profile incidents at this year’s Australian Open.
During her loss to eventual champion Madison Keys, Swiatek was called out for a bizarre delaying tactic during the third set.
She was also involved in another questionable moment when she won a point despite the ball appearing to bounce twice before she reached it.