Iga Swiatek has reportedly upped her security after being harassed by a man during a training session. The Polish ace is competing at the Miami Open, where she’ll face Alexandra Eala in the quarter-final later today (Wednesday).
Swiatek has established herself as one of the dominant forces on the WTA Tour scene, having already been crowned a five-time Grand Slam champion. But the 23-year-old’s preparations for her third-round clash against Elise Mertens at the Florida-based tournament were rocked when she was allegedly approached by a man on Sunday afternoon.
Recording himself shouting abuse towards Swiatek, the man was claimed to have said: “Hey Iga, call your mother. Iga, when are you going to make up with your mother? Daria runs with water, like a trained dog,” a reference to the tennis star’s psychologist, Daria Abramowicz.
As a result, a member of Swiatek’s camp claimed that she would now have increased security in order to prioritise her safety. Speaking to Polish outlet Super Express Sport, Swiatek’s PR manager said: “We are monitoring these types of cases. Constructive criticism is one thing, threats, hate speech, or even disrupting the team are another: this cannot be allowed.
“We reported the matter to the tournament organiser as well as the WTA, who reacted immediately and took additional precautions, such as increased security, for which we are very grateful. Ensuring the safety of the athletes is the most important thing.”
It comes after Emma Raducanu was involved in a similar incident while competing at the Dubai Tennis Championships earlier this year. A man who “exhibited fixed behaviour” was removed from the arena during one of Raducanu’s matches after she had been approached by the same person at her hotel in Dubai.
Commenting on the ordeal, Raducanu told BBC 5 Live: “Since that incident I have definitely got increased attention and greater security. All we can do is look at what happened and react to it in a better way, in a more positive way, rather than looking back and blaming the situation.
“Now it is being dealt with better, so for me that’s important. I’m always now very aware and not necessarily doing things on my own any more. I’m always with someone and always being watched.”
Much like Swiatek, Raducanu is also vying for a spot in the Miami Open semi-finals, with the Brit set to take on Jessica Pegula in her quarter-final. It’s a maiden WTA Tour 1000 last-eight tie for Raducanu, and the first time she’s won four consecutive matches at a tournament since winning the US Open in 2021.
