Tennis star Iga Swiatek has been slammed for her behaviour after she was knocked out of Indian Wells on Friday following her defeat at the hands of Mirra Andreeva. The five-time major winner lashed out at a ball kid as she failed to defend her crown.
Swiatek had impressed in her last few performances and headed into her clash against Andreeva in good form. However, the 17-year-old was at her very best on Friday in a tense clash.
Swiatek has since come under immense criticism for her conduct during the third set of her loss. After being given a ball ahead of her serve, the Polish star turned and smashed the ball into the ground.
The ball kid could be seen raising their arms, aware that Swiatek had truly lost her temper as the match slipped away from her. The ball narrowly missed the young male before bouncing into the crowd.
The moment of madness was met with a chorus of boos from those sitting in the stands, who were stunned by how Swiatek had almost struck the ball kid.
The incident occurred just a matter of minutes after the Pole had complained to the umpire about how some of the ball kids were moving whilst she was waiting for Andreeva’s serve, though many did not have sympathy for her given how she lashed out so furiously. The umpire responded to Swiatek’s remonstrations by saying: “I am watching, I saw you holding your racket,” but the exchange did not appear to calm the defending champion.
A clip of the incident has been shared online and met with widespread disapproval, with one fan writing: “Ugly and dangerous, no need to take your anger out on a ball-kid.” Another added: “Iga Swiatek deserved that loss, what a jerk. Awful behaviour, even made the ball kid flinch.”
“Terrible behaviour on the court. Have some dignity please. Leave the ball kids alone,” wrote another X user. Another claimed it was some of the worst behaviour they had ever seen on a court before: “Swiatek literally hitting a ball back at a ball kid. Poor sportsmanship and dangerous play. I’ve never seen such ugly behaviour before.”
Another added: “All the anger from Iga in sets 1 and 3, and just totally unacceptable from her.”
The incident did not distract Andreeva though, who will be looking to secure back-to-back WTA 1000 titles when she takes to the court for the final.