Iga Swiatek keeping 'expectations low' as she attempts Wimbledon title defence

[p]With nine different winners in the last 10 editions ‌at the All England Club, the six-times Grand Slam title winner said she did not ‌know why repeating success on grass had proved so difficult, even ‌for established majors champions.[/p][p]"[b]For sure it's a tournament that creates maybe different challenges ‌when you come back as the defending champion because of the ‌whole thing that is happening around it[/b]," [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/swiatek-iga/jNyZsXZe/"]Swiatek[/a] told reporters on Saturday.[/p][p]"[b]I think there were players that won this tournament that already have won many tournaments and ‌Grand Slams. Why particularly it's hard to repeat ⁠that, I have no idea[/b]."[/p][embed guid="dd74c445-c004-4332-8152-58fe2182f20e" url="https://x.com/Wimbledon/status/2070511236475761131" social-type="twitter" /][p]The Polish ‌player claimed her maiden Wimbledon crown last year in emphatic style, crushing American [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/anisimova-amanda/nwkutKbi/"]​Amanda Anisimova[/a] 6-0 6-0 in the final, but has struggled to replicate that dominance in recent months.[/p][p]Her season has been marked ​by inconsistency, with quarter-final exits at the Australian Open, Qatar and Indian Wells, followed by a shock second-round loss to compatriot [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/linette-magda/vXvzyRlq/"]Magda Linette[/a] in ⁠Miami. That defeat prompted ​a coaching change, with Swiatek replacing Wim Fissette with Francisco Roig.[/p][p]The biggest setback came at Roland Garros, where the four-time champion suffered a surprise fourth-round exit to Ukraine’s [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/kostyuk-marta/8CZqQdSa/"]Marta Kostyuk[/a].[/p][p]Her grasscourt preparations have also been underwhelming, losing ‌to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/navarro-emma/WxLdKcAs/"]Emma Navarro[/a] in the last 16 at Bad Homburg where she was top seed, leaving her with questions to answer ahead of her Wimbledon defence.[/p][p]"[b]I feel like I'm starting from a totally different position and I'm really in a place that I'm keeping my expectations low,[/b]" the 25-year-old said.[/p][p]"[b]Even though everybody is talking about this (being the defending champion), I feel like I need to play matches and I need to adjust. It's not going to be smooth because of last year[/b]."[/p][embed guid="c2c9f2d1-c1b2-4877-99fa-973397bc49da" url="https://x.com/Wimbledon/status/2070843505472119142" social-type="twitter" /][p]Seeded third ‌this year, Swiatek will open her campaign against American [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/townsend-taylor/Y9jUuHka/"]Taylor Townsend[/a] on Tuesday and said she hopes to build momentum as the tournament ‌progresses.[/p][p]"[b]When I watch myself from last year, I remember that I was just so focused on the goal, didn't have many doubts[/b]," Swiatek said.[/p][p]"[b]At the beginning of the tournament, obviously you don't know what you're level is. You need to figure it out in ⁠the early matches. I could progress ⁠match by match[/b]."[/p][p]Wimbledon runs from ‌June 29th to July 12th.[/p]