Aryna Sabaleanka continues to make great strides in the game and she is working on going up a level.
The 26-year-old is currently playing some of her best tennis of the year after winning successive titles at the Cincinnati Open and US Open.
Her consistent and aggressive play has made life very difficult for her opponents and she is on a mission to clinch the China Open title for the first time.
The three-time Grand Slam champion is also aiming to grab the World number one ranking from Iga Swiatek and she could be within striking distance should she claim the title in the Chinese capital.
Aryna Sabalenka’s form is back on track after she suffered injury at the Berlin Open in June. She produces exceptional power off of each groundstroke and has improved her movement and ability around the net.
But perhaps the improved aspect of Sabalenka’s game is her mental toughness, which at times cost her in matches earlier in her career.
For example, if the crowd was against her, at times she would be unable to block out the noise and just focus on her game.
This is something Novak Djokovic has mastered, especially when playing against the likes of his biggest rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
During an interview with Championat, Sabalenka’s coach Anton Dubrov explained how the World number two is working on having the same mentality as the 24-time Grand Slam champion.
“At the early stage of her career, she [Aryna] went into wild stress and began not to play to her strengths and physicality, but to rush, play hyper-aggressively, behave loudly – and thus simply losing control,” he said.
“Now she has learned to better direct stress where she can control it, to add pressure on her opponent. This process was long. Yes, Novak experiences something similar when he plays, and the crowds will sometimes cheer against him. But he knows how to channel this energy.
“This is his unique trait – to do such this in important moments. This is what Aryna has started to do better at. She’s not at the same level yet, but you can strive for it, no matter how you feel.”
Over the course of her last 14 matches, Sabalenka has dropped just one set. After defeating America’s Ashlyn Krueger, the China Open’s top seed will face her compatriot Madison Keys.
Like Sabalenka, the 29-year-old is a powerful striker of the ball and with a dangerous serve, and she has the ability to cause Sabalenka problems.
In their last meeting at the 2023 US Open, Sabalenka came from 0-6, 3-5 down to win 0-6, 7-6(1), 7-6 (5) to reach her first US Open final.
If their upcoming clash is anything like their contest in New York, fans are certainly in for a treat.
