Emotions after victory
Sabalenka: “When my father died, …”
After two semi-finals and last year's final, Aryna Sabalenka fulfilled her dream of winning the US Open title in New York. The 26-year-old world No. 2 from Belarus was very emotional after beating Jessica Pegula of the USA 7:5, 7:5 in the final. She cried in her boyfriend's arms in the stands and repeatedly hit the lucky lion tattoo on her coach's bald head. In the moment of triumph, Sabalenka also thought about her personal fate.
"After I lost my father, it was always my goal to write our family name in the history books of tennis," said Sabalenka after the nerve-wracking thriller. "Every time I see my name on this trophy, I'm so proud of myself, so proud of my family, that I never gave up on my dream."
Her father died when Sabalenka was 21 years old. She had promised him that she would win two Grand Slams before she turned 25. Now the two-time Australian Open winner was celebrating title number three in a shower of blue, white and red confetti with the longed-for silver trophy from the US Open in her arms. A year ago, she had left the US Open in tears of disappointment after losing to US crowd favorite Coco Gauff in the final.
"Tiger" Sabalenka dominates the match
In the front rows of the Arthur Ashe Stadium, her supporters and boyfriend Georgios Frangulis and fitness coach Jason Stacy were now cheering. "I couldn't imagine my life without you, I love you so much," she said in the direction of her box. Stacy presented a large, non-permanent image of a tiger with bared teeth, which he had stuck on himself as a lucky charm shortly before the match.
Sabalenka has a real tattoo of the predator on her left forearm, which has long earned her the nickname "The Tiger" - and she was her usual aggressive self on the court. With her power tennis, the 1.82 m tall Minsk native dominated the rallies, scored many points with direct winning shots and repeatedly went to the net successfully. One statistic caused quite a stir during the last major of the year: Sabalenka hit her forehand faster on average than everyone else - including the men.
However, as she also made 34 easy mistakes, Sabalenka was once again shaken despite taking a 3:0 lead in the second set. Suddenly, memories of 2023 came flooding back, when she had squandered a set lead and thus the title in the final. "I was just praying in the second set," admitted Sabalenka.
A real rollercoaster ride
By passing the test of nerves, she crowned a season full of highs and lows for the time being. After winning the title at the Australian Open, she had to cope with the death of her former boyfriend Konstantin Koltsov in March this season. "When my father died, tennis helped me to come to terms with this difficult loss. That's why I thought I would just keep playing and separate my personal life from my career," she told the Guardian in August. She was "emotionally and mentally at the limit", she told ESPN after winning the final.
But the full focus on the sport led to her body being overloaded. She had to withdraw from Wimbledon due to problems with her right shoulder and also did not compete at the Olympics in Paris. It was only on her beloved hard court that Sabalenka returned to her old strength and became the first player since Angelique Kerber in 2016 to win both the Australian Open and the US Open in the same season.
Focus on the world rankings
"We'll probably drink a lot," said Sabalenka about the plan for the party afterwards. She had an advantage over her coach Anton Dubrow. The latter also received a trophy, but it was much smaller. "I'll have a proper hangover tomorrow," said Sabalenka, referring to the capacity of the trophy, "more than you".
She has now caught up with Naomi Osaka (4) in terms of Major wins for all active players in fourth place. Ahead of her are Venus Williams (7), who will not be able to add to her tally, and of course five-time champion Iga Swiatek. Despite two major titles this year, she has not yet caught up with the Pole, emphasis on yet. At least in the race she has come as close as 409 points. "I try not to focus on the ranking, to be honest," said Sabalenka. She prefers to focus on herself and knows that if she can play her best tennis, "I will be able to become number 1 again".
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