Milan, 13 Sept. (LaPresse) – “It’s really hard to control your emotions when you lose a Grand Slam final.” This is how Aryna Sabalenka tried to vent her frustration after her defeat to Elena Rybakina in the US Open final. For the Belarusian tennis player, 2026 has been a disappointing year so far, with two defeats in as many Grand Slam finals against the Kazakh player, who has also taken the top spot in the WTA rankings from her as of tomorrow. During the final in New York, Sabalenka was unable to contain her anger on several occasions, hurling a ball into the stands and receiving a warning. She shouted at herself, slammed her first racket to the ground and then completely smashed another one at the end of the match. “I just wanted to let out all that aggression and disappointment on court,” said Sabalenka. “I was trying to achieve a hat-trick of victories,” she added. “I would have liked to play a bit better, but I suppose I’ll try again next year,” said Sabalenka. “Obviously, I’m not satisfied with the standard of play I showed,” she added. “I was out there fighting, trying to do my best with the resources I had,” said Sabalenka. “It wasn’t enough.” Sabalenka failed to win any of the Grand Slam tournaments this season, ending the season without a title for the first time since 2022. “I’ll keep working hard and improving my tennis,” said Sabalenka. “There are many lessons to be learnt from this tournament. Experience shows that I always come back stronger, and all the lessons from this season have undoubtedly already made me stronger. It will certainly be an incentive to do better next year,” she concluded.
US Open, Sabalenka: ‘I’ll learn from this defeat’
Milan, 13 Sept. (LaPresse) – “It’s really hard to control your emotions when you lose a Grand Slam final.” This is how Aryna Sabalenka tried to vent her frustration after her defeat to Elena Rybakina in the US Open final. For the Belarusian tennis player, 2026 has been a disappointing year so far, with two defeats in as many Grand Slam finals against the Kazakh player, who has also taken the top spot in the WTA rankings from her as of tomorrow. During the final in New York, Sabalenka was unable to contain her anger on several occasions, hurling a ball into the stands and receiving a warning. She shouted at herself, slammed her first racket to the ground and then completely smashed another one at the end of the match. “I just wanted to let out all that aggression and disappointment on court,” said Sabalenka. “I was trying to achieve a hat-trick of victories,” she added. “I would have liked to play a bit better, but I suppose I’ll try again next year,” said Sabalenka. “Obviously, I’m not satisfied with the standard of play I showed,” she added. “I was out there fighting, trying to do my best with the resources I had,” said Sabalenka. “It wasn’t enough.” Sabalenka failed to win any of the Grand Slam tournaments this season, ending the season without a title for the first time since 2022. “I’ll keep working hard and improving my tennis,” said Sabalenka. “There are many lessons to be learnt from this tournament. Experience shows that I always come back stronger, and all the lessons from this season have undoubtedly already made me stronger. It will certainly be an incentive to do better next year,” she concluded.