Iga Swiatek and Emma Raducanu Share Thoughts on French Open Showdown

Originally posted on Serve on SI | By Pat Benson | Last updated May 26, 2025 1:45 PM ET

On Monday, fifth-seeded Iga Swiatek and unseeded Emma Raducanu both won their first-round matches at the French Open. Their victories set them up for yet another showdown in the second round.

Despite winning, their matches could not have been any more different. Swiatek easily defeated Rebecca Sramkova in straight sets: 6-3, 6-3. Raducanu battled through illness to outlast Wang Xinyu in three sets: 7-5, 4-6, 6-3.

After their matches, Swiatek and Raducanu were both asked about the upcoming match scheduled for Wednesday, May 28.

"She's a great player and has a great forehand. She can use her topspin pretty well. So we played already a couple of times," said Swiatek in her post-match press conference.

The winner of the last three French Opens continued, "We know each other's game. For sure, I'll need to be intense and focus on myself. For sure, she won the U.S. Open. She can play great tennis. So, I'll be ready."

During Raducanu's post-match press conference, she said, "I feel like Iga has always played really well when we've played. Especially in Australia this year. So, I'm looking forward to playing her again."

"I think in the last month, I've made good strides with my game and my mentality as well, big time. Yeah, it's great. I get another crack at the best in the world. I'm looking forward to playing on a big court probably as well," concluded Raducanu.

Swiatek is 4-0 against Raducanu, with her most recent win coming in the form of a dominant third-round victory at the Australian Open. Swiatek is the WTA World No. 5 with a record of 28-9, while Raducanu is No. 41 with a record of 13-10.

The 2025 French Open runs from May 25 - June 8.

This article first appeared on Serve on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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