Australian Open 2026: Iga Swiatek spotted in telling post

Iga Swiatek showed some great sportsmanship on Monday night at the Australian Open after ending the fairytale run of local qualifier Maddison Inglis. The World No.2 was ruthless against her Aussie opponent, marching into the quarter-finals with a 6-0 6-3 victory.

It brought an end to Inglis' remarkable run, after the 28-year-old Aussie made it all the way to the Round of 16 from qualifying. Inglis had to win three matches in the qualifying tournament just to make the main draw, and after two wins in the opening two rounds she was gifted passage into the Round of 16 when Naomi Osaka withdrew.

It was a life-changing week for Inglis despite her loss to Swiatek, with the West Australian pocketing $480,000 as a result. Inglis received a wonderful ovation from the crowd as she departed Rod Laver Arena on Monday night, with many standing and applauding her efforts.

And Swiatek recognised the gravity of the situation as well. The Polish star immediately stopped what she was doing and clapped Inglis as the Aussie walked past her and off the court.

It was only a simple gesture, but one that showed what an extraordinary week it was for Inglis. Swiatek was also seen offering some nice words to Inglis when the two players shook hands at the net.

"I felt pretty confident from the beginning," the former World No.1 said of her win. "I felt like the pace of the ball was much different on my last round so I needed to adjust with my legs and really be precise with my footwork and I'm happy that I went for it."

What will Maddison Inglis do with $480,000 winnings?

Inglis admitted she was "disappointed" with her performance in the first set, but proud of her efforts throughout the tournament. "I thought I did my absolute best out there and I gave it everything," the 28-year-old said.

"So I am disappointed, but also proud of that. Even though today didn't go like I had planned, it was an incredible two weeks - pretty life-changing for me with the best result of my career. I'm looking forward to taking it into the rest of the year."

Inglis is set to climb from 168 to 113 in the WTA rankings, and said she'll use her winnings to "invest back" into her tennis. She added: "It's a lot of money, it's pretty cool. I'll definitely use a lot of it to invest back into my tennis and have some people on the road with me to support me and make some weeks a bit easier with family or friends, because it's a long year."

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