Aryna Sabalenka did not straight verify nor deny that this yr’s Australian Open remaining loss was the hardest of her profession however she did acknowledge that she had a tough time accepting it and wanted a while to course of it.
After finishing back-to-back triumphant runs at Melbourne Park in 2023 and 2024, the world No. 1 was within the midst of one other large run and he or she seemed to be destined to drag off a historic three-peat.
However then, her plans had been hit with a chilly bathe after Madison Keys received a thriller remaining 6-3 2-6 7-5.
Moments after the ultimate ended, Sabalenka angrily smashed her racket – put a towel over her head – and left the court docket earlier than the trophy ceremony.
Since then, she has appeared in two tournaments and went solely 1-2 throughout Doha and Dubai.
Sabalenka requested if the Australian Open remaining loss to Keys was the hardest loss that she skilled
“I had some robust losses previously, however that one was robust to just accept, to be sincere. It took me, like, per week and perhaps a little bit bit longer than that to cease considering and to lastly transfer on,” the three-time Grand Slam champion defined.
“I would say that lesson discovered and it is previously. It is all the time — not all the time really, but it surely’s good to have these robust losses as a result of subsequent time you are going to do significantly better.”
As talked about above, Sabalenka picked up two very early exits on the current WTA 1000 tournaments in Doha and Dubai.
However she insists she stays motivated and eager on getting again to successful methods in Indian Wells.
“Oh, yeah, completely, sure. This sort of disappointing losses all the time inspire me to maintain working exhausting. And yeah, that was a troublesome one, however I believe it is behind me,” the 26-year-old mentioned.
“Now I am able to get that revenge again if I am going to have an opportunity (smiling).”
In Indian Wells, Sabalenka has a first-round bye and can meet McCartney Kessler or Anna Blinkova within the second spherical.
The Belarusian was the closest to successful all of it within the desert in 2023, when she completed as runner-up to Elena Rybakina within the remaining.
