Four-time French Open champion Swiatek has established herself as the 'Queen of Clay' over the last few years, with her dominance on the surface ensuring she has been the player to beat at Roland Garros over the last few years. 

Yet she was beaten by Jelena Ostapenko in the Stuttgart Open and then served up some uncharacteristic clay court performances as she tried to defend the Madrid Open title. 

Swiatek lost the first set of her quarter-final against Madison Keys 6-0 in Madrid and while she did well to battle back in the match, her 6-1, 6-1 semi-final defeat against Coco Gauff was an eye-catching scoreline. 

That was followed by reports in the Polish media claiming Swiatek may be preparing to take a break from tennis, but those stories have now been dismissed the 23-year-old as she prepares to return to action at the Italian Open. 

Swiatek's status as one of the biggest stars in her nation should ensure she gets positive media attention, but she has suggested on more than one occasion over the last couple of years that she feels the tone of the comments around her are all negative, especially from sections of her own Polish media.
That sparked her decision to release a long statement on Instagram pleading with the media to understand the struggles she is going through in a year that saw her post a positive doping test and lose her status as the world number one to Aryna Sabalenka. 

While the doping test was confirmed to be a case of contamination of a sleeping product, stories about Swiatek's private life have continued to cause the young star distress and with her form on court now also looking uncertain, the latest batch of misleading stories have clearly left her frustrated.

--SABC--