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Aryna Sabalenka revealed she was extremely deprived following back-to-back opening losses in Indian Wells and Miami last year as that was the moment when she started doubting if she would be able to achieve her dream of winning a Grand Slam.
At the start of the 2022 season, Sabalenka was having major difficulties with her serve and it was negatively impacting her performance and results in a big way. During the Sunshine Double last year, Sabalenka went 0-2 after suffering back-to-back shock losses against Jasmine Paolini and Irina-Camelia Begu.
After turning to a biomechanics trainer to improve her serve, Sabalenka found her mojo on the serve once again and became a Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open this past January. “After the Miami Open it was really tough.
I was all over the place, it wasn’t me, I wasn’t Aryna, I was a depressed little girl. Definitely last year I was like, ‘OK, I will never get it [a Grand Slam trophy].’ It was the moment and it was a really tough period for me.
But I’m happy that I got through it and still didn’t lose this belief," Sabalenka told Arab News.
Sabalenka accomplished one major goal, now she has another in mind
After winning the Australian Open, Sabalenka also returned to her career-high ranking of No 2 in the world.
Now that Sabalenka is a Grand Slam champion, she has set her eyes on achieving another major goal - she wants to replace Iga Swiatek at the top spot. “It’s my first priority, I would say; I really want it,” Sabalenka said regarding the world No 1 ranking.
Right now, Sabalenka has 6,100 points while top-ranked Iga Swiatek has 10,900 points. However, it should be noted that until the grass season, Swiatek has a large number of points to defend. For example, Swiatek will have to defend 2,000 points during the Sunshine Double, while Sabalenka won't have that many points to defend.