Iga Swiatek, the world No. 2 and five-time Grand Slam champion, has long been a dominant force on the WTA tour, her relentless baseline game and clay-court mastery drawing comparisons to Rafael Nadal. Yet, as she kicked off her 2025 European clay season at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, the 23-year-old Pole opened up about a facet of her game that remains a work in progress: her serve. In a candid post-match interview after her commanding 6-2, 6-2 second-round victory over Jana Fett on April 16, 2025, Swiatek drew an unexpected parallel to world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz to explain why her serve “is never going to be perfect.” “I’m working on it all the time,” she said, acknowledging the challenge. “I’m never going to have a serve like Karolina Pliskova, but I feel like I’m still improving it.”
Swiatek’s self-assessment came after a match where her serve, while not her strongest weapon, was highly effective, boasting a 94% first-serve point win rate against Fett. The two-time Stuttgart champion, who received a first-round bye as the No. 2 seed, attributed her overall success to her passion for the game but zoned in on her serve as an area for growth. Comparing herself to Alcaraz, the 21-year-old Spaniard who has four Grand Slam titles and recently reflected on his own serve’s evolution in his Netflix documentary, Swiatek noted their shared commitment to refining imperfect aspects of their games. “I think I’m a bit like Carlos in that way,” she said. “He’s always working on his serve, and you can see it’s getting better, but it’s not the finished product. It’s the same for me.”
Alcaraz, whose 2024 season included a Channel Slam (French Open and Wimbledon), has spoken about his serve’s inconsistency, particularly under pressure, despite his explosive forehand and athleticism. Similarly, Swiatek’s serve, while reliable, lacks the overpowering velocity of players like Pliskova or Aryna Sabalenka. Data from her Stuttgart match highlights this: her fastest serve clocked at 171 km/h (106 mph), respectable but not elite. Yet, her precision and tactical acumen compensate, as she explained: “You don’t need a perfect serve if you’re moving well and hitting your spots.” Her ability to dominate rallies with topspin-heavy groundstrokes and suffocating defense remains her hallmark, especially on Stuttgart’s fast indoor clay, which she called “a great transition” from hard courts.
Swiatek’s introspective comments reflect her growth since her 2020 Roland Garros breakthrough at age 19. Her 2024 season, which included a 21-1 clay record and titles in Madrid, Rome, and Paris, showcased her dominance, though a one-month suspension for testing positive for trimetazidine—a banned heart drug deemed unintentional—tested her resilience. Now, with a 22-2 record in 2025, including titles in Doha and Dubai, Swiatek is chasing a third Stuttgart crown and the iconic Porsche prize. Her preparation, documented in her trusty notebook of tactical cues, keeps her grounded. “I write my tactics there and also some keywords that I want to remember when I sometimes struggle,” she shared last year, a practice that mirrors Alcaraz’s meticulous approach to self-improvement.
The Alcaraz comparison extends beyond their serves. Both players balance prodigious talent with a youthful desire to evolve, a trait Swiatek admires in the Spaniard’s relentless work ethic. “Carlos is always pushing, even with all he’s achieved,” she noted, a nod to his Netflix series *Carlos Alcaraz: My Way*, which highlights his quest to become the greatest. Swiatek’s own ambition—to reclaim the No. 1 ranking and add to her 22 WTA titles—drives her daily. As she advances to the Stuttgart quarterfinals, potentially facing Jelena Ostapenko, her focus remains on incremental gains. “It’s about finding that balance between what’s working and what needs work,” she said, embodying her pragmatic yet passionate approach.
Swiatek’s Stuttgart journey is about more than just titles—it’s a testament to her evolution as a player willing to confront her weaknesses head-on, much like Alcaraz. With her serve steadily improving and her love for tennis fueling her fire, the Pole is poised to leave an indelible mark on the clay season, one precise shot at a time.