Perfectionist Swiatek savours managing the pressure to win fourth French Open

PARIS : Iga Swiatek described her French Open triumph on Saturday as an emotional win and said she was proud to have handled the pressure of being the favourite to win a third consecutive title on the Parisian clay.

World number one Swiatek steamrolled Italian surprise finalist Jasmine Paolini in straight sets, 6-2 6-1, to claim her fifth Grand Slam title, and fourth at Roland Garros, but said that being a perfectionist meant there had been an added challenge.

"I'm a perfectionist, so there's always pressure on me. I'm fine handling my own pressure. When outside pressure hits me, it is a little bit worse. But I managed it really well at this tournament," Swiatek told reporters.

"It was an emotional win because I felt a lot of stress yesterday and today in the morning. And I knew if I'm going to just focus on tennis I can kind of fight through it, and at the end it all went how I wanted. So I just felt really proud of myself."

Dubbed the queen of clay by fans and pundits for her dominance on the surface, Swiatek dropped one set throughout the tournament, in a second-round epic with Naomi Osaka where she had to save a match point.

She shrugged that off and blew away all comers, showing her might by putting Anastasia Potapova to the sword in the fourth round with a 40-minute 6-0 6-0 victory.

The 23-year-old Pole, who also won the Roland Garros title in 2020, said she was fully aware that perfectionism was a double-edged sword.

"When I do anything, I want to do it 100 per cent. I think when you're a perfectionist, you are a perfectionist everywhere," Swiatek said.

"But this is a tricky thing because it helps you to be better but sometimes it can be huge baggage as well."

Looking ahead to the grasscourt season and next month's