Some things are better left unsaid.
Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek’s post-match interview took an awkward turn Sunday when the interviewer mentioned possibly spitting on her after beating Elena Rybakina in straight sets to reach the Cincinnati Open final.
“Wait, [is that] rain?” Swiatek, 24, said as she looked up at the sky, pausing a question about facing Jasmine Paolini in the final.
“No, it’s probably me spitting on you when I’m asking you a question,” the interviewer said, which drew laughter from the audience at P&G Center Court.
Swiatek glossed over the remark and apologized for pausing the interview.
“I just heard something, I thought it was thunder,” she said. “OK, whatever — sorry, that’s just my mind.”
The interviewer added, “It’s an airplane” that the athlete heard.
Swiatek, ranked third, won the Cincinnati Open title for the first time by defeating No. 7 Paolini, 7-5, 6-4 on Monday night.
Swiatek had failed to advance past the semifinals in her six previous appearances in Cincinnati — having lost to Coco Gauff in 2023 and Aryna Sabalenka in 2024.
Swiatek didn’t drop a set during a phenomenal run at the U.S. Open tuneup.
The last two years, both the men’s and women’s Cincinnati Open champions went on to win the final major of the year.
Swiatek won the U.S. Open singles title in 2022.
The four-time French Open winner secured her first Wimbledon title after dominating American Amanda Anisimova last month.
