Zheng Qinwen hits back at Iga Swiatek's criticism of 'overwhelming' WTA schedule for 2026 - 'The strongest players survive'
By Jonny Bray
Published 30/09/2025 at 16:40 GMT+1
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Zheng Qinwen has hit back at Iga Swiatek's criticism of the WTA’s rules and schedule. The world No. 2 has previously stated that the stars of the sport play too much and that her schedule is becoming "overwhelming". Swiatek is currently competing at the Beijing Open, where she is set to go head-to-head with the USA’s Emma Navarro in the round of 16 on Wednesday.
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Zheng Qinwen has hit back at Iga Swiatek’s criticism of the WTA’s rules and schedule.
World No. 2 Swiatek said that the stars of the sport "play too much" and admitted that her schedule over the next 11 months looks "overwhelming" ahead of her round-of-32 clash with Camila Osorio at the Beijing Open.
She won that match after Osorio was forced to withdraw while a set down, and after the match, she revealed that she may have to start picking and choosing which tournaments she takes part in.
Swiatek also criticised the WTA rules, which require the elite players to compete in at least six WTA 500 tournaments as well as every Grand Slam, WTA 1000 event, and the WTA Finals.
"Maybe I will have to choose some tournaments and skip them, even though they are mandatory," said the Polish star during the post-match press-conference.
"WTA with all these mandatory rules, they made this pretty crazy for us. I don’t think any top player will actually be able to achieve this, for example, playing the six 500 tournaments.
"It’s just impossible to squeeze it in the schedule. I think we have to be smart about it and not really, unfortunately, care about the rules, and just think what’s healthy for us. It’s tough."
Zheng was forced to retire during her own round-of-32 match with Linda Noskova, despite having just returned from a shoulder injury she suffered at Wimbledon.
She believes that only the strongest can survive on tour and that the busy schedule is just part of the sport.
"I mean, this is part of the game," she said. "As a professional player, this is what it is, because we have to play that many tournaments in the calendar.
"I think my situation’s different than them. I [am] coming from surgery, which is a really rushed decision for me to play here.
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"But also it is the right decision for me because I want to see where my body is right now.
"Okay, now I know to compete [in the] third set, the amount of hitting the balls is too much for me.
"But I don’t think for professional players the calendar is too much because the strongest players survive, and that’s the rule in my head."
Swiatek will now face the USA’s Emma Navarro in the round of 16 on Wednesday.
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