Iga Swiatek didn't mind that much the stands in Riyadh not being fully packed for her opening WTA Finals match as the Pole explained that it made her feel more comfortable because she was playing her first match in two months.
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On Sunday, the defending champion at the season-ending tournament kicked off her title defense in style by coming back from a set and two breaks down to beat Barbora Krejcikova 4-6 7-5 6-2.
While this year's French Open and Wimbledon champions were taking on each other, former British tennis star Tim Henman was doing match commentary for Sky Sports. At one moment, the former Wimbledon semifinalist blasted the Riyadh crowd as "extremely disappointing." On Sunday, some journalists estimated that there were just 400 fans in the stands while the arena can take up to 3,000 spectators.
Swiatek on how she felt about the crowd in Riyadh
Following her win over Krejcikova, the 23-year-old was asked if she would have preferred there to be more crowd.
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"Obviously (I would like there to be more crowd). But I think it was also comfortable for me because it was my first match after a break, so the fact it wasnt super crazy also made it easier kind of for me. I think theres gonna be more crowd. I guess today is the first working day because they have their weekend on Friday and Saturday, so well see how its going to go in the next days," Swiatek said.
For the Pole, it was her match since losing in the US Open quarterfinal to Jessica Pegula Today, the new world No. 2 will return to action to take on Coco Gauff. If the defending champion wins, she will automatically book a semifinal ticket.
On paper, a Swiatek and Gauff matchup is one of the most attractive ones and it will be interesting to see if it draws a big crowd.
