Aryna Sabalenka Thanks Kids from Her Childhood Tennis School After Defending US Open Crown: “I Was Crying”

Aryna Sabalenka grabbed her fourth title of the season after a straight-set victory over home favorite Amanda Anisimova.

Aryna Sabalenka Thanks Kids from Her Childhood Tennis School After Defending US Open Crown: “I Was Crying”

Aryna Sabalenka (Image via X/Jimmie48 Photography)

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Aryna Sabalenka‘s US Open run ended on Saturday (September 6), and she was ecstatic afterward, for she is now a two-time singles US Open champion. Sabalenka avoided the mistakes she made during her Australian Open and French Open finals to clinch her first Major title of the season.

Sabalenka prevailed over Amanda Anisimova in straight sets and also avenged her Wimbledon semifinal defeat to improve her head-to-head record to 4-6 and tie it 3-3 in Grand Slam events. For Sabalenka, it was her seventh Grand Slam singles final as well as her third straight one at Flushing Meadows.

While thanking her family, friends, and team during the trophy presentation, the Belarusian revealed she received a video from kids from her childhood tennis school that made her cry.

Last but not least, also I know that kids back home watching me… This morning, I received a video from the tennis school where I started from the kids. They were cheering me on, they were wishing me all the best wishes. I was crying a little bit this morning. That was the moment where I realized I can’t let them down. I have to give them some positive vibes.

Sabalenka also ended the 11-year wait for US Open title defense, becoming the first woman since Serena Williams (2014) to clinch two consecutive titles at Flushing Meadows. The 27-year-old is also only the third woman in the Open Era, after Naomi Osaka and Kim Clijsters, to clinch her first four Majors singles on hard courts.

Sabalenka has now played three finals at the Australian Open and US Open in consecutive seasons, and this made her only the third player after Steffi Graf and Martina Hingis to do so.

Aryna Sabalenka on Wimbledon semifinal mistakes she avoided in the US Open final

Aryna Sabalenka played her third semifinal at Wimbledon this season, but instead of trusting her decisions, she was filled with doubts and felt less confident in her shot selection. The result was a three-set defeat to Amanda Anisimova. But in the US Open, Sabalenka had decided to play aggressively from the very start of the match.

Aryna Sabalenka
Aryna Sabalenka (Image via X/The Tennis Letter)

Going to this match, I knew what to expect. And she’s aggressive player. She plays really aggressive tennis. And I think that at Wimbledon, I was overthinking, I was doubting my decisions, and I was stopping my arms a lot, and I was making a lot of mistakes, and if not mistakes, I would just slow down the speed, and then she would just step in and go for her winners.

Aryna Sabalenka said at the press conference

The win helped Sabalenka maintain her No.1 ranking. Anisimova will officially become a World No.4, her career-best ranking, on Monday.

In the New York Slam, Sabalenka played her eighth final and clinched her fourth title of the season. Anisimova played her fourth final of the season, and the only title she lifted was the Qatar Open by defeating Jelena Ostapenko. Apart from Wimbledon and the US Open, the World No.1 also lost to Tatjana Maria in the final of the Queen’s Club Championships.

Next is the Asian swing, and Sabalenka will be aiming to clinch the China Open for the first time. Last year, she failed to go beyond the quarterfinals. But at the Wuhan Open, she defeated Qinwen Zheng to win her third title in the tournament.

Anisimova has only one WTA 1000 title under her belt, this year’s Qatar Open. She has never progressed beyond the fourth round of a tournament on the Asian swing. Last year, she reached the fourth round of the China Open and the second round of the Wuhan Open.

Also read: Jannik Sinner Recalls Titanic 2022 US Open Quarterfinal With Carlos Alcaraz Ahead of Their Blockbuster Final