World No1 Iga Swiatek has credited Ashleigh Barty has the inspiration behind her stunning run of form and admitted she had mixed feelings when the Australian retired in March.

The Polish effectively replaced Barty atop the WTA rankings when the Aussie star walked away from the sport and has justified her status by winning the French Open and US Open. 

Swiatek won 37 consecutive matches between February and July and made nine finals, winning eight titles in the process. 

Barty shocked the world of tennis nine months ago, leaving the sport just two months after she had followed up her Wimbledon triumph in the summer of 2021 by winning the Australian Open. 

In April Swiatek admitted crying for over 40 minutes after Barty announced her retirement, but she has now explained how the Aussie's decision to step away from tennis drove her to prove herself. 

'At first I felt like I wasn’t sure if this is my place to be, you know,' Swiatek said in Brisbane on Thursday ahead of Poland's inaugural United Cup campaign.

'Ash, she seemed like a huge role model for everybody in terms of her behaviour on court but also off court.

'She really set the bar pretty high, so I need to show it to people but also show it to myself that I’m in the right place. 

'I feel like a huge satisfaction, because I have been working my whole life to get to this point. I didn't really think it's possible for me.'

Swiatek will head into the Australian Open next month as the runaway favourite, but insisted there were areas of her game she still needed to work on.

And she revealed she hopes to meet Barty during her stay in Australia to thank her former rival for being the catalyst for her recent success.

'Maybe this week we are going to be able to meet and I’m going to say it straight to her [Barty], but she really inspired me to work harder,' she added. 

'Her different game style made me realise that there is always room for improvement.

'Even right now I feel like there is a lot I can change and improve and I’m pretty excited that even when I had such a nice season this year I can do some different stuff.'

Swiatek and her Poland teammates will make their United Cup debut on Saturday against Kazakhstan.