Aryna Sabalenka admits why she almost retired from tennis three years ago after claiming unwanted WTA record
Aryna Sabalenka admits why she almost retired from tennis three years ago after claiming unwanted WTA record
Peter Lynch
Peter Lynch
Tue 7 January 2025 10:00, UK
Updated Tue 7 January 2025 10:40, UK
Aryna Sabalenka has enjoyed stunning success in her career so far, and doesn’t look like stopping anytime soon.
Sabalenka has been backed for Australian Open success this month, having won the last two editions of the competition.
WTA number one Sabalenka beat Elena Rybakina in the 2023 Australian Open final, and followed that up by beating Qinwen Zheng in 2024.
Sabalenka also won the 2024 US Open after losing the 2023 final, and is now in perfect shape for another Grand Slam success after winning the Brisbane International.
Rybakina could challenge Sabalenka in Australia, but the latter can be confident of another fantastic run in Melbourne.
Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus celebrates winning the Women’s Finals match against Polina Kudermetova during day eight of the 2025 Brisbane Internation…
Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images
Aryna Sabalenka almost quit tennis after double-fault struggles
She occupies top spot in the WTA rankings after a thrilling 2024 battle with Iga Swiatek, but has now revealed just how difficult it has been to reach this stage of her career.
“It took me a lot to get where I am right now, and I’ve had to make a lot of sacrifices,” she told BAZAAR Australia.
READ MORE: Aryna Sabalenka shares why she was standing on her racket during the Brisbane International final
“It has definitely taken a lot of hard work, and it’s a long process. It’s not something that happens just by one click.
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“A time that comes to mind where I had to show my resilience and where I was really close to saying, ‘Okay, I’m done’, was two or three years ago when I was double-faulting non-stop and everything seemed to be going wrong.
Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus buries her head in her towel during her match against
Rebecca Peterson of Sweden during day three of the 2022 Adelaide…
Photo by Sarah Reed/Getty Images
“I was thinking to myself, Okay, it’s time for me to give up and to quit… it’s time for me to retire. But then I realised I have so much love for the sport and there are so many things behind the scenes that I just couldn’t give up.
“I had to stay strong and try one more time, try something else to figure out my problem, and I think that was the turning point for me in my career.”
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How have Aryna Sabalenka’s double-fault struggles improved?
Sabalenka was perhaps alluding to her disastrous double-fault record in the 2022 season, where her 428 double-faults were more than any other player on the WTA Tour.
She also claimed that unwanted record in the previous two seasons, with tallies of 338 in 2021 and 166 in 2020.
READ MORE: Ons Jabeur and Aryna Sabalenka predict the same WTA player is going to break into the top 10 this year
That area of her game has, however, been steadily improved upon, with the Belarusian reducing her double-fault total to 285 in 2023, ranking fourth instead of top.
And in 2024, her figure of 205 double-faults ranked 18th on the WTA Tour, with Coco Gauff’s unwanted tally of 430 well out on top.
Aryna Sabalenka was asked if she has fear on the tennis court:
“Yes, I do have actually. I have fear of double faults.” 😂 pic.twitter.com/vbw43bHcdV
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) April 19, 2023
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Work has clearly been done behind the scenes with her coaching team to resolve the issue, with Gauff perhaps needing to consider a similar approach in order to fully realise her potential.
It is certainly fair to say that Sabalenka made the right call in sticking with tennis, and there is no telling just how much the 26-year-old can still achieve.
Year Double-faults Rank
2024 205 18th
2023 285 4th
2022 428 1st
2021 338 1st
2020 166 1st
Aryna Sabalenka’s double-fault record (WTA Tour stats)
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