Aryna Sabalenka apologises to her coaches despite defending US Open title: ‘I was terrible towards you’
Defending champ Aryna Sabalenka lifted her second US Open title, after a year which saw great performances at the slam level with no trophy yet.
Aryna Sabalenka lifted her fourth Grand Slam title to cap off a dominant year, beating Amanda Anisimova at Arthur Ashe Stadium in straight sets to ensure she didn’t go trophyless. The world number one saved some of her best tennis of the tournament for the final, where she largely played with relatively methodical and controlled power to outdo her hard-hitting opponent.
It was a very different Sabalenka from the one that usually takes the court, and it wasn’t easy for the Belarusian to play against her style by giving herself extra margin and a willingness to play the extra ball. However, against a player who had beaten and knocked her out of Wimbledon, it proved to be the right decision.
Sabalenka admitted that reaching the finals of the Australian and French Opens and then the semifinals of Wimbledon without being able to convert to a trophy was a challenging phase to go through, but she was also happy that she was able to lift the US Open, with hard courts being her most dominant surface.
At the post-match trophy presentation, Sabalenka admitted that things hadn’t gone exactly to plan, and even took time out to share a playful apology with her box for the outbursts and anger she had shown over the course of the year, particularly in those final losses to Madison Keys and Coco Gauff.
"It was tough. In those finals, I was really terrible towards you, but come on, it was worth it, right? Thank you so much. I love you, you're my family,” said a cheerful Sabalenka to her coaches and team, appreciative of how they had helped her get over that mental hump and seal the title in New York.
The Belarusian holds on to her world number one ranking, while it is two difficult final losses in a row at the grand slam level for Anisimova. Sabalenka was tuned in, minimising her unforced errors and slowly breaking down the superb Anisimova backhand. However, it was a good home tournament for the American even without the trophy, as she becomes a fixture at the business end of tournaments, and enters the top five of the WTA rankings as well.
