Iga Swiatek now discloses what she did immediately after her heavy defeat to Coco Gauff in Madrid

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Iga Swiatek was left shellshocked following her heavy defeat at the Madrid Open.

The Pole took on Coco Gauff, a rival who she had beaten 11 times in 14 meetings and was undefeated against the American on clay.

But that streak came to an emphatic end as Swiatek hit 21 unforced errors in a 1-6, 1-6 defeat in the Spanish capital.

She could not keep the ball in court and looked out of sorts during the contest, and this prompted a reset ahead of the Italian Open.

Iga Swiatek says what she done after losing to Coco Gauff at the Madrid Open

Iga Swiatek was reduced to tears as she could not find any solutions against Gauff in Madrid.

She claimed just 35% of the points behind her second serve and she was unable to create any break points on Gauff’s serve.

The manner of Swiatek’s defeat left the tennis world stunned and with her Italian Open defence beginning so soon after the Madrid Open, Swiatek took action to clear her mind before heading to Rome.

“The first two days I had off. I loved it, because I needed that, especially after not having a lot of time to reset after Stuttgart,” Swiatek said.

“Honestly after I lost, I immediately went to rest mode and I was really chilled. Then we came here and got two really solid days of practice. Another day off and just a last practice yesterday to work on the stuff, before the match.”

What has Iga Swiatek improved on throughout her career?

Following her break Swiatek travelled to Rome for the Italian Open and she has made an emphatic start.

Swiatek defeated home favourite Elisabetta Cocciaretto for the loss of just one game to advance to the next round. The Pole looked refreshed and back to her belligerent best.

Therefore, her short break after Madrid seems to have paid off, but choosing to make decisions like this in the middle of the season is something she has learned to have better judgement on throughout her career.

“I think I am better every year. I had to learn to do that,” Swiatek said. “After these seasons where I was playing the next tournament immediately, for sure this is a good skill to have, to be able to relax pretty fast.

“But, honestly, I always need some time to get over the match anyway. No matter if I win or lose. Probably if I lose a bit more time! So no point rushing it, but now I feel like I was craving for a day off, so it was pretty fast the reset.”