Ayrina Sabalenka with the US Open trophy. © APA/afp / TIMOTHY A. CLARY

“Mentally at the limit”: Sabalenka crowns emotional year

After two semifinals and last year's final, Aryna Sabalenka has fulfilled her dream of winning the US Open title in New York. The 26-year-old world number 2 from Belarus was very emotional after her 7:5,7:5 win over the American Jessica Pegula in the final.

September 08, 2024

From: dpa/sn

In the stands, she cried in her boyfriend's arms 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 losing my father, it was always my goal to write our family name in the history books of tennis," Sabalenka said after the nerve-wracking thriller. "Every time I see my name on this trophy, I am so proud of myself, so proud of my family, that I never gave up on my dream."

Her father died when Sabalenka was 21. She had promised him that she would win two Grand Slams before she turned 25. Now The two-time Australian Open winner celebrated in a blue-white-red confetti shower with the longed-for silver trophy of the US Open in her arms Title number three. A year ago, she left the US Open in tears of disappointment after losing the final to US crowd favorite Coco Gauff.

Faster forehand than the men

In the first rows of Arthur Ashe Stadium, her fans, including boyfriend Georgios Frangulis and fitness coach Jason Stacy, cheered. "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 that he had stuck on himself as a good luck 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 as aggressive as ever on the court. With her powerful tennis, the 1,82 m tall Minsk native dominated the rallies, scored many points with direct winners and was always successful at the net. One statistic caused a stir during the last major of the year: Sabalenka hit her forehand faster on average than everyone else - men included.

Sabalenka with the tiger tattoo on her forearm. © APA/afp / TIMOTHY A. CLARY

By passing the test of nerves, she crowned a season full of ups and downs for the time being. After winning the Australian Open title, she had to cope with the death of her former boyfriend Konstantin Koltsov in March of this season. "When my father died, tennis helped me to deal with this heavy loss. That's why I thought I'd just carry on playing and separate my personal life from my career," she told the Guardian in August. She was "emotionally and mentally at her limit," she reported at ESPN now also after the final victory.

“I’m going to have a terrible hangover tomorrow.” Aryna Sabalenka

But the full focus on the sport led to an overload of the body. She had to withdraw from Wimbledon due to problems with her right shoulder, and she also did not compete in 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 one season.

"We'll probably drink a lot," said Sabalenka about the plan for the party afterwards. She had an advantage over her coach Anton Dubrow. He also received a trophy, but it was much smaller. "I'll have a serious hangover tomorrow," said Sabalenka, looking at the capacity of the trophies, "more than you."