Iga Świątek explains how coach Francisco Roig tore his Achilles — on a court in a Rome piazza

ROME — Iga Świątek’s coach, Francisco Roig, tore his right Achilles tendon when stretching for a volley as they played a practice match — with €100 ($118) at stake on a special clay court set up in one of the city’s piazzas.

“Yeah, I broke my coach’s Achilles,” Świątek told a few reporters in a mixed zone Friday after a three-set win over American world No. 63 Caty McNally at the Italian Open. Roig, a longtime coach of Rafael Nadal, watched the 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-3 win with his right leg heavily bandaged, after getting to his seat on crutches.

“We were having a practice on Piazza del Popolo,” Świątek said, referring to the large square in Rome where the Italian Open erects a clay court for promotional activities, with fans in attendance.

“We were like, ‘OK, I’m going to play this fun game we were playing before.’ I wanted to show it to him. He’s really good on the volley. So we made a bet for €100 ($118). I thought I was going to lose, honestly, because he’s been playing so great the volley.

“I was like maybe let’s play only the singles court. It’s a half court basically (with both players hitting volleys to one another inside the service box). I want to win, I’ll make you move a little bit,” she said.

“I had 5-4 and the match point already. He did a split step and tore his Achilles.

“I don’t think people noticed how serious it was because he was so brave in the moment. I would burst out crying. I would make such a drama. His face was like normal. I thought he was joking at the beginning. My hitting partner thought he was joking, as well.”

The injury happened Saturday, and Świątek said that Roig had surgery in Warsaw before returning to Italy Tuesday. The recovery time is normally around nine months — even if Denmark’s Holger Rune will attempt to comeback after seven at this month’s Hamburg Open — and while Roig does not need to be in the same shape as a professional player, it’ll still be a significant challenge for him to coach as he would like to.

He and Świątek have only been working together for just over a month, after she decided to part ways with Wim Fissette after a year and a half. Roig had recently stopped working with Britain’s Emma Raducanu, and left his role coaching France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard to join up with Świątek.

“It’s not easy right now in the practices because he can’t be next to me. But we’ll make it work, for sure.”

Świątek and Roig spent longer on court than they might have expected Friday. After cruising to a 6-1, 3-1, 15-40 lead against McNally, with two break points for 4-1, Świątek twice failed to serve out the match and frequently made errors in the face of her opponent’s resolute defense. She broke first in the third set, but was again pegged back, before earning the chance to serve out at 5-3 and this time securing the win.