"Humility and ambition are key". Father of Iga Świątek on his daughter's success

The 19-year-old has taken the Paris courts by storm. She didn't lose a single set in any of the five games she played so far. In each one of them, she displayed a bold and uncompromising style of play. She managed to defeat the No.1 seed Romania's Simona Halep.

On Thursday, Świątek will face Argentina's Nadia Podoroska in the French Open semifinal game.

Tomasz Świątek was a guest of Wednesday's "Fakty po Faktach" in TVN24, on the eve of his daughter's French Open semifinal game, and only hours after her win in doubles quarterfinal. A former rower, an Olympian in Seoul in 1988, talked about what should help his daughter Iga, who in recent days has been in the spotlight.

"First and foremost, Iga needs peace. In order to succeed, she needs to have her head completely clear. I hope she's unaware just how popular she is at the moment in Poland. Let's not forget she's only 19 and so we cannot consider her a fully grown person yet" - said the 56-year-old.

He also revealed the secret on how to conquer the biggest arenas, at which so often even the most talented players slip.

"Iga is very ambitious. She sets up a goal for herself and consistently pursues it. It's the same thing with the Grand Slam. This ambition helps her in pursuing her dreams and winning" - he said.

The host of the show Piotr Kraśko also asked Mr Świątek what advice would he give to millions of Polish parents dreaming about their kids pursuing such impressive sport careers as his teenage daughter.

"We need patience, appropriate approach to young players. We need to wait until they develop physically and technically. It takes plenty of factors in order to develop a professional in the world of sports. The crucial ones are, first and foremost, perseverance, patience, and a word that Iga hates to hear me say, humility. She says I've always kept on repeating it, so let's pretend this time I haven't" - he explained.

When the biggest stars such as Rafael Nadal or Simona Halep were complaining about tennis balls or court surface, Iga Świątek was simply doing her job and focused only the game.

"It's not that she's not complaining at all. The cold disturbs her. Iga isn't used to playing in difficult conditions, but due to her age she shouldn't gripe in the media yet. She's only started to fight to join the world elite. The great ones can complain, as the stars have their privileges" - Tomasz Świątek said.

October 8 can become one of the most remarkable dates in the history of Polish tennis. The French Open semifinal game between Iga Świątek and Nadia Podoroska begins at 3pm.