Iga Swiatek has called on the French Open to alter its court layouts after several players were injured when tripping over obstacles at the back of Roland Garros courts. The world No. 3 spoke out following a series of incidents that have raised safety concerns at the Grand Slam tournament.
On Friday, Turkish player Zeynep Sonmez and her partner Tatjana Maria were forced to retire from their second-round doubles match after Sonmez fell while chasing a lob and collided with a Lacoste advertising board. Sonmez later revealed she required two stitches and had a bruised knee. Earlier in the week, Belgian player Alexander Blockx withdrew after injuring his ankle on rain covers at the back of a practice court.
Great Britain's Katie Boulter also narrowly avoided injury when she tripped on a board during her second-round match. She posted on X: 'THESE THINGS HAVE TO GO. Got lucky last night but next time I might not be …' Sonmez responded, saying: '5 incidents in 5 days. Do we really have to wait until a player is seriously injured before these courtside boards are removed?'
Swiatek commented: 'Obviously if these things happen, there needs to be a reaction. It's a shame – I hope they're going to put them in a different place or just put the advertising in a different way there, because it's not safe for sure.'
The issue is not new at Roland Garros, which uses advertising panels and rain covers behind the baseline, unlike other Grand Slams. In 2017, David Goffin retired due to a similar incident. Marta Kostyuk expressed doubt that changes would be made, stating: 'I feel like there are some rules that no matter what happens, they just cannot be changed.'
