Iga Swiatek is breaking the silence on the ball kid incident in Indian Wells by issuing a lengthy message and addressing everything she has gone through over the last half a year.
During a three-set semifinal loss to Mirra Andreeva in Indian Wells, the Polish tennis star smashed the ball in a moment of frustration and it nearly struck a ball kid. The footage of the incident quickly started making rounds on social media and led to the five-time Grand Slam champion receiving criticism and backlash.
Last month in Doha and Dubai, Swiatek also showed some visible stands of frustration and destroyed a racket. And the comments made about the 23-year-old's behavior and actions haven't gone unnoticed by the player herself.
Swiatek: I'm not proud of my act but I didn't expect such harsh judgement
"It's true - I expressed frustration in a way I'm not proud of. My intention was never to aim the ball at anyone but merely to release my frustration by bouncing it on the ground. I immediately apologized to the ball boy, we made eye contact, and nodded to each other when I expressed regret that it happened near him," the world No. 2 said in her message.
"I've seen many players bounce balls in frustration, and frankly, I didn't expect such harsh judgments. 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."
In the message, Swiatek admitted that the uncertainty surrounding the doping ban and also missing some big tournaments and seeing that impact her ranking played a role in some of her actions. Also, she noted that the same people who used to call her "robotic" for not expressing much on the court in the past, are now criticizing her for expressed herself more.
