Iga Swiatek hilariously admitted that she 'felt lighter' after a bathroom visit shifted momentum in her US Open match
- Iga Swiatek advanced to the 2022 US Open final with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 win over Aryna Sabalenka Thursday.
- The 21-year-old noted that a bathroom break between the first two sets helped shift the momentum.
When you gotta go, you gotta go — even when you're the world's top-ranked tennis star.
World No. 1 Iga Swiatek acknowledged that a bathroom break she took between the first and second sets of her 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory over Aryna Sabalenka Thursday night shifted the momentum of their high-stakes US Open semifinal match.
When the reporter conducting her on-court interview asked what she told herself in that moment, the 21-year-old Polish star was remarkably honest. "It's more what I did," she said.
"I kind of needed to go," Swiatek admitted with an awkward chuckle. "But yeah, um. Well, for sure I felt lighter."
"Sorry, that's disgusting," she added as the crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium laughed and applauded.
Though she may be the most candid, Swiatek isn't the only tennis star who has made some bathroom humor during this year's tournament. After upsetting second-ranked Anett Kontaveit in the second round of the US Open, none other than Serena Williams told the press she "got lighter" during a trip to the toilet ahead of the decisive third set.
"Use your imagination," she said with a smirk. "But it wasn't number two, so..."
Williams bowed out of the tournament in the next round, closing her career with a fairy-tale ending fitting of tennis' greatest-ever champion.
Swiatek, however, has gone the distance in spite of doubts about her abilities on the hard court. With her comeback victory against Sabalenka, Swiatek punched her ticket to her first US Open final.
The two-time Grand Slam champion is set to face world No. 5 Ons Jabeur, whom she calls "a really solid player" in Saturday's championship match.
"She's just a tough opponent and fully deserves to be in the final," Swiatek said during her post-match press conference. "I think it's going to be a great battle."