Iga Swiatek has found herself in the crosshairs of angry tennis fans once again after being accused of a ‘classless’ and disrespectful handshake towards Coco Gauff at the United Cup finale in Sydney. Gauff sent an ominous warning ahead of the Australian Open after taking down five-time major winner Swiatek 6-4 6-4 , before Taylor Fritz finished the job in a three-set thriller against Hubert Hurkacz that saw Team USA claim the United Cup trophy.

It was a dramatic finale to the teams event, but Swiatek copped fresh backlash after being criticised for several moments on Sunday night. The World No.2 has already felt the wrath of tennis fans around the world after being handed a lenient one-month doping ban for testing positive to banned heart medication trimetazidine (TMZ) in August. The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted the positive test was caused by contamination, hence Swiatek’s short suspension.

And the five-time major winner gave critics even more fuel to use against her after a dramatic defeat to Gauff in the first rubber of the United Cup final. Swiatek was panned after losing the opening set and taking a lengthy toilet break, which many fans viewed as a questionable tactic to try and disrupt Gauiff and throw the American off her game.

Swiatek was again accused of gamesmanship after taking an injury timeout at a critical moment while trailing 4-5 in the second set. But the incident that sparked the majority of backlash against the 23-year-old came in the form of a frosty handshake with Gauff at the net, following the American’s impressive straight-sets victory.

Iga Swiatek slammed over ‘cold’ Coco Gauff handshake

The Polish World No.2 met Gauff at the net but barely made eye contact with her opponent and only offered a very brief touching of the hands, before leaving the court. Swiatek didn’t even seem to offer a single word of congratulations to the American, prompting accusations from viewers that she is a ‘sore loser’ and was guilty of poor sportsmanship.

Swiatek was contesting her first official event since the one-month doping ban and the heavy workload of playing singles and mixed doubles appeared to take a toll as she fell short in the final for a second year running. Gauff’s victory meant she finished the United Cup undefeated and looking in ominous touch ahead of the year’s first grand slam – starting at Melbourne Park next Sunday.

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World No.3 Gauff repeated her straight-sets victory over Swiatek at the WTA Finals in November with another statement win over the five-time major winner. Swiatek had her left thigh strapped during the semi-final win over Elena Rybakina and needed treatment for a right-side complaint late on against Gauff. The Pole ended the match in tears after leaving the court briefly following a marathon 10-minute eighth game in the second set, when Gauff pulled out all stops to break back for 4-4.

Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz clinch United Cup for Team USA

Swiatek’s struggles were typified by a double-fault on match point as Gauff rejoiced in posting a second straight triumph over her, having lost 11 of their first 12 meetings. Gauff will surely head into the Australian Open as one of the favourites for the women’s title, while fellow Team USA star Fritz also continued his fine form after ending 2024 strongly.

Fritz made his first grand slam final at the US Open, then reached the ATP Finals decider to climb to World No.4. And the big-hitting American clinched the trophy for his side after coming through a tense 6-4 5-7 7-6 (7-4) victory over Hurkacz in the men’s singles.

The win saw Team USA claim their second United Cup trophy in three years. “The team vibes all week are amazing,” Fritz said afterwards. “That’s one of the things that makes our team so great. We just really came together as a team this week and it’s amazing.”

with agencies