Iga Swiatek criticized and called a ‘sore loser’ for what she did immediately after her defeat to Jelena Ostapenko in Stuttgart

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Iga Swiatek was not best pleased with her performance after losing to Jelena Ostapenko at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart.

Swiatek lost to Ostapenko for a sixth consecutive meeting, as the Latvian continues her dominance in their head-to-head.

After levelling things up by winning the second set, Swiatek made mistakes against Ostapenko in the decider.

The world number two’s performance was not the only thing that some people picked up on, as Swiatek was criticized for what she did in the immediate aftermath of the match.

Iga Swiatek criticized for what she did after her defeat to Jelena Ostapenko

After Ostapenko beat Swiatek, 6-3 3-6 6-2, the players both approached the net for the usual handshake.

While she evidently acknowledged Ostapenko at the net, some people noticed the swift nature of Swiatek turning away from her opponent following her defeat.

This led to criticism for Swiatek on social media, with some suggesting that she did not take the loss in a sporting manor.

One social media user said, “Iga is the most sore loser I have ever seen. And the coldest person on the court. Her handshakes are forced!”

Another person added, “Iga is turning into a sore loser. Didn’t see that side before, I’m coming to like what I’ve seen of Jelana’s character more than Iga’s in the last couple of months.”

This was echoed by someone else who said, “Iga SMH [shake my head] this is poor sportsmanship.”

One other social media user agreed with the previous sentiments, saying, “The sorest loser on tour.”

Followed by another person saying, “Iga a sore loser fr [for real].”

However, some people jumped to the defence of Swiatek and claimed that this handshake was completely understandable from her point of view.

“Shut up man. I’m no Iga fan but can a player not be upset she keeps losing to the same opponent? This is a natural reaction. Grow up!”

This is not the first time that Swiatek has received criticism for her on-court actions in recent months, with the 23-year-old particularly receiving backlash for what she did at Indian Wells last month.

What is next for Iga Swiatek?

The European clay court season is a very busy part of the year for many tennis players, but particularly Swiatek.

Last year, Swiatek went on 19-match winning streak during the clay court swing and collected titles in Madrid, Rome and ultimately ended up with her winning a fourth Roland Garros title.

This means that Swiatek has over half of her current ranking point total to defend in just three tournaments, as she looks to refind that sort of form and win her first title since Roland Garros last year.

Next up for the world number two is the Madrid Open, where Swiatek and Sabalenka played match of the year in the 2024 final.

The main draw of the Madrid Open for the WTA Tour gets underway on Tuesday April 22.