Iga Swiatek and her distractive tactic against Donna Vekic at San Diego Open.

What was notable about Swiatek’s performance however, was not just the result, but a rather unusual and quite frankly distractive tactic she employed against her opponent.

At one point during the match, with Vekic serving at 2-1 down in the first set, Swiatek began to make some very strange noises. It sounded like a mix between grunting and growling, and it was very off-putting for Vekic who was trying to focus on her serve.

The umpire came over to have a word with Swiatek, but the world number one just shrugged it off and carried on with her strange noises. It’s unclear what she was trying to achieve with this tactic, but it definitely seemed to work as Vekic’s concentration was clearly affected.

After saving two match points in the second set, Swiatek approached the net and put her hand out to offer a handshake, before quickly withdrawing it and returning to her chair.

The 19-year-old later repeated the same thing after winning the match, prompting Vekic to accuse her of unsportsmanlike conduct.

“It’s not the first time Iga has done something like this on the court, I don’t know why she did it again today,” Vekic said. “I think it’s unnecessary. I don’t think there’s any reason to do that. I guess she was just trying to play mind games or something.

Swiatek, who is currently the world No.17, took to Twitter to offer an apology to Vekic, saying she didn’t mean to offend her. “I would like to apologize to Donna if I offended her today with my gesture at the net,” Swiatek tweeted.

“It was certainly not my intention and I’m sorry that she felt that way. I hope she knows that I have great respect for her as a player and a person.”