Swiatek’s Paris Olympic dreams pivot to bronze medal after semifinal loss

After her stunning semifinal loss to Zheng Qinwen, Iga Swiatek found herself in an alternative universe — on the wrong side of a match score at Roland Garros.

Jaw set, eyes and face red, she conceded later it was not her best effort.

“It’s the result of the match. So I just messed up,” Swiatek told Eurosport Poland afterward. “I just had a hole in my backhand. It happens rarely because it is usually my most solid strike.

“I was not technically well-positioned because of the stress and the fact that I played my games day by day. We didn’t have time to adjust that and work on that. I know that’s not the justification, but I tried to correct that during the match. Today it didn’t work at all.”

But Swiatek can make up for some of that disappointment Friday.

Despite perceptions to the contrary, Swiatek’s Olympic dreams did not die with that loss to Zheng. The 23-year-old from Poland still has a chance to win a medal in Paris — it’s just a different color than the one she imagined.

On Friday the World No.1 takes on Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia. To the victor goes the bronze medal, a coveted piece of hardware sure to be cherished forever.