Following her back-to-back Australian Open triumphs, Sabalenka reflected on the changes in her life
Paula Badosa is a Spanish professional tennis player – Tennis World USA
Belarusian tennis star Aryna Sabalenka secured her second singles Grand Slam title last week by defeating China’s Qinwen Zheng in the 2024 Australian Open final.
The 25-year-old successfully retained her crown in Melbourne, not dropping a single set on her path to victory. Following her back-to-back Australian Open triumphs, Sabalenka reflected on the changes in her life.
Sabalenka discussed personal growth, and when prompted to elaborate, she referred to being more open with people. As an illustration, she cited her friendship with Paula Badosa.
“I would say that I’m more open right now. I’m happy that I was able to build some friendships, like with Paula [Badosa]. Because before I was so closed and I was so afraid to open up to people. I’m happy that I have such a friend like Paula. She’s the best. I love this girl. I think we’re kind of similar.
“And it’s not like I wasn’t respecting people before, but I respect everyone more than I used to,” she told to WTA Tennis.
Sabalenka is among those athletes who never shy away from expressing their emotions. The Belarusian is someone who celebrates when she is happy and vents her frustration when things don’t go her way. This also results in some racket smashes here and there. However, the count of such instances has gone down, and Sabalenka believes the increased self-control is the reason behind it.
Talking about the personal improvement she often mentions, Sabalenka revealed how she has more control over her emotions now. The 25-year-old says that although she finds it extremely tough to hide her emotions, she is trying to stay in control, at least on the court.
“I cannot ignore the fact that I’m really proud that I was able to understand myself better. I have this control of myself. That’s quite an obvious thing.
“Everyone sees that, but it’s really tough to improve when you’re such an emotional person and you’re used to getting super emotional every time. To actually become really in control on the court, it’s really tough work,” she added.
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