<p>The effects were evident as Swiatek's level dipped in ‌the second set of her 7-5, 6-1 defeat, sealing her earliest ‌exit from Paris since her debut campaign in 2019.</p><p>It was a 25th birthday ‌to forget for Swiatek, who has not lifted a clay-court title ‌since her 2024 French Open triumph, and the Pole was clear why she was beaten comprehensively by 15th seed Kostyuk.</p><p><strong>"I lost control of the match, and there was ‌no way to come back, because I felt ⁠worse and worse. This isn't positive, ‌and this is different than losing to Elina Svitolina in Rome or to ​Mirra Andreeva in Stuttgart," Swiatek told reporters.</strong></p><p><strong>"It's not great. I know I lost because I was tense, and my body couldn't ​do... the proper things, but it's not the first time, as well. So yeah, I just need to work on it.</strong></p><p><strong>"Honestly, maybe the toughest ⁠loss is when you ​had the match in your hands, you made stupid decisions, you let it go, and your opponent suddenly came back.</strong></p><p><strong>"It's also bad when your tennis is terrible, and you know you were worse than the players you ‌play with. But I feel I lost today because Marta used the opportunity, and I was super tense."</strong></p>

Season to improve?

<p>Swiatek said she was fully aware of what she needs to work on to improve and would not rush it.</p><p><strong>"Maybe it's not going to take one week or one month," the six-time Grand Slam champion added.</strong></p><p><strong>"Maybe it's going to take even a season or something, but I need to believe that I can work through this and not be thrown off so quickly."</strong></p><p>Swiatek will need ‌to dust herself off quickly ahead of the grass-court season as she ​bids to defend her Wimbledon title when the tournament begins on ‌June 29th.</p><p><strong>"I haven't thought about grass at all," Swiatek said.</strong></p><p><strong>"Yeah it was a great year last year, but also, my previous results weren't good. They were good, but depending on how you look at it.</strong></p><p><strong>"I'm going to probably take it easy and try to ⁠be patient and be humble. I ⁠don't know how it's going ‌to be. I'm not a wizard."</strong></p><p>Check out the game summary with Flashscore.</p>