Iga Swiatek may have said it best when conversation at her pre-tournament press conference at the Australian Open turned to winning the Career Grand Slam.
“I think you guys are thinking more about it,” Swiatek said. “I can hear that.”
For the six-time Grand Slam champion, who inched closer to becoming the 11th woman to manage the lofty feat when she won her maiden Wimbledon title last year, the goal is to keep improving and playing at the highest level. The rest of the accolades and milestones, should fall into place if she does that.
“Honestly since the beginning of the year, there are many people coming to me and talking to me about [the Career Slam],” she said. “I’m really just focusing on, like, day-by-day work. This is how it’s always been for me. This is how I actually was able to achieve the success that I already have, just focusing really on grinding, match by match.
“Winning a Grand Slam is tough. Like a lot of things have to come together to do that. Yeah, it’s a tough tournament. So I have, like, no expectations. Obviously it would be a dream come true. This is not, like, my clear goal that I wake up with. I’m thinking more about how I want to play, what I want to improve, like, day by day.”
Alcaraz is a little more open about his desire to become the 9th – and youngest – man to achieve the honor.
“Obviously completing the career Grand Slam is something amazing to do, be able to be the youngest that have done it before, you know, is even better,” he said, after asked about his comments about trading a Roland-Garros title with Sinner, so that they both could have the Career Slam.
“I would trade Australia for Roland-Garros with Jannik,” Alcaraz joked. “I would trade that, to be honest.”
He doubled back on those comments when asked which of his titles he would trade for an Australian Open title in his press conference saying, “I don’t know. It is a question that I got to think about it, not just a quick answer.”
Roger Federer, making the rounds ahead of his appearance in the Battle of world No.1 exhibition in Rod Laver Arena this weekend, said that he’s pulling for Alcaraz to do it, but he knows first-hand how tricky the pressure can be.
“You know how it is,” he said, adding: “He knows about it. It’s like Rory going for the Masters. Those things are tough.
“At the end of the day, like I say, the momentum shifts after first round. Then it’s point-for-point mentality. But it’s true, in order to complete the career Grand Slam already now would be crazy. So let’s see if he is able to do ‘crazy’ this week. I hope he does because for the game, again, that would be an unbelievable, special moment.
“He has another hundred and whatever players that say, We don’t agree with those plans. They might try to stop him.”
