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Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff questioned the constant filming at Australian Open, urging for player privacy amid growing camera culture and viral moments in tennis.
Iga Swiatek at the 2026 Australian Open (AFP)
Iga Swiatek has picked up right where Coco Gauff left off — asking tennis an important question it can’t keep dodging.
After Gauff’s off-court, frustration-fuelled moments at the Australian Open went viral, the American suggested that “maybe conversations can be had” about the sport’s ever-expanding, access-all-areas camera culture.
On Wednesday, Swiatek echoed that sentiment, only with sharper edges.
Iga Swiatek on constantly being filmed at Australian Open and other tournaments, ‘The question is, are we tennis players? Or are we animals in the zoo? It would be nice to have some privacy’“I wanted to ask something that Coco was talking about last night. The cameras backstage… pic.twitter.com/0vCJVBxeqJ
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) January 28, 2026
Following her 7-5, 6-1 quarterfinal defeat to Elena Rybakina, the world No. 2 was asked about the lack of off-camera spaces for players at big tournaments.
“Are we tennis players, or are we like animals in the zoo where they are observed even when they poop?” Swiatek said, quickly apologising for the exaggeration. “But it would be nice to have some privacy.”
Swiatek and Gauff, two of the biggest stars in women’s tennis, naturally live under constant scrutiny.
Success brings attention, and attention brings cameras. Swiatek knows that better than most, as a five-time Grand Slam champion.
One clip of her being stopped by security after forgetting her accreditation became a meme during the tournament.
Harmless? Maybe. Necessary? That’s the question she’s asking.
The Australian Open has leaned hard into fan engagement, turning the season’s first major into a three-week festival. Off-court footage from tunnels, warm-up areas and player corridors is now standard, even if it isn’t always broadcast live.
Players know that any moment — cute, chaotic or uncomfortable — can end up online within minutes.
Swiatek isn’t rejecting visibility, but rather asking for balance.
“There are things I’d like to practise just before going on court,” she said. “It would be nice to have some space where you can do that without the whole world watching.”
As Swiatek put it plainly, “It’s not our job to be a meme when you forget your accreditation.”
(with agency inputs)
January 28, 2026, 10:44 PM IST
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