Rennae Stubbs tells Iga Swiatek exactly what she needs to start doing on serve after she suffers another defeat at the Italian Open

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Rennae Stubbs has not minced her words when talking about Iga Swiatek of late.

The Pole has endured a difficult 2025 season, but many expected her to achieve success on clay, a surface she has dominated in recent years.

But Swiatek was comprehensively beaten by Coco Gauff in Madrid before Danielle Collins overcame the Pole in Rome.

Neither of these players had beaten Swiatek on clay before and Rennae Stubbs was very disappointed with how she played.

Rennae Stubbs tells Iga Swiatek how to improve her game after her Italian Open defeat

Following a crushing defeat to Gauff in Madrid, Iga Swiatek aimed to bounce back in Rome.

She began the campaign with an emphatic 6-1, 6-0 victory over Elisabetta Cocciaretto, before taking on the dangerous Collins, who claimed just her second career victory over Swiatek.

The Pole won just 25% of her second serve points, and Stubbs sent a strong message to Swiatek over how she can improve her serve moving forward.

“When you are missing your first serve, which Iga is doing way too much on clay. You don’t need to hit a winner on the serve! So if you are going to hit your kick serve, do it on the first serve,” Stubbs said via her self-titled podcast.

“Danielle is standing four feet behind the baseline to hit her first return on the first serve, that is your opportunity as a clay courter with a good kick serve, I would work on it a lot more, she does not hit it enough.

“Now your opponent is behind the baseline, now they are having to hit the return up above their shoulders and it’s very hard to hit a winner off of that particular serve, on the first serve. Then if she gets it back, she is behind the baseline.

“Now you can utilise your spin and ability to make her move. Instead she is missing the first serve too much and Danielle stands up on the baseline and Iga is going I am going to hit my kick serve and Danielle is going thank you very much.

“She is going crash bang on every second serve and hitting winners and Iga is not even able to get in the point.”

What does Rennae Stubbs think of Wim Fissette coaching Iga Swiatek?

In October 2024, Swiatek parted ways with coach Tomasz Wiktorowski and replaced him with Wim Fissette.

Despite the Belgian’s impressive track record, he has yet to guide the five-time Grand Slam champion to any success.

Given how things have progressed over the past six or seven months, Stubbs thinks there is plenty for coach Fissette to work on.

“I’m like you have to strategically think I have not won one service game in the first set!,” Stubbs added.

“Stand over further, in the backhand court, I would have her move over a bit, use the kick serve and get her off the court on the first serve. She is not being coached well and it is affecting her tennis.”