Unlike many players competing in the WTA circuit focusing either on their singles or doubles ranking, Aryna Sabalenka has asserted her dominance in both and proved herself as a formidable opponent in both camps.
The tennis professional hailing from Belarus has set an impressive record in her singles and doubles ranking, being placed at world No. 1 in doubles by the WTA and former world No. 2 in the singles category. While the young 24-year-old has much more to offer in her singles career, she is a two-time Grand Slam champion in doubles.
Aryna paired up with Belgian tennis player Elise Mertens to clinch her first Grand Slam doubles title at the 2019 US Open. The duo, seeded No. 4 at the championship, partnered to defeat Victoria Azarenka and retired Australian tennis professional Ashleigh Barty in the Flushing Meadows final.
The Belarusian’s quest to clinch and add to her portfolio another doubles title wouldn’t end there as two years later she paired with her partner Elise Mertens again to claim the 2021 Australian Open doubles championship.
The seed No. 2 Belarusian-Belgian pair swept past Czech pair Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova to crown themselves as the Australian Open doubles champions for 2021.
Aryna’s first-ever appearance at a Grand Slam semi-final came at Wimbledon 2021 where she would eventually lose to Karolina Pliskova, ending her championship chase on a sour note. But recently, Sabalenka’s search for her maiden Grand Slam title came to an end.
Aryna Sabalenka won her maiden Grand Slam title clinching the Australian Open 2023
Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka on 28 January 2023, dropped to the Rod Laver Arena’s tennis floor in delight after claiming her first-ever singles Grand Slam crown.
Despite issues concerning Russian and Belarusian players being forbidden to compete under their country’s affiliation, the 24-year-old became the first neutral player to win a major title.
View this post on Instagram
Her victory at Melbourne Park came as a result of her improved mental stability between matches and more aggressive gameplay against her opponents. She walked past 22nd seed Kazakh, Elena Rybakina, who despite losing to Aryna put up a thrilling show for the spectators. The Belarusian registered a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win against Elena.
As a result of her Australian Open victory, Sabalenka will now return and stabilize to her former career-high ranking of world No. 2, running just a position behind WTA No. 1 player Iga Swiatek and owing to her current form, is likely to emerge as a threat this season.
Discussion about this post