Aryna Sabalenka Reveals When She Shifted Motherhood Goals Aside After Record-Breaking Season on Tour
Aryna Sabalenka finished the 2025 season with almost 2,500 points lead at the top of the WTA rankings.
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Aryna Sabalenka (Image via X/The Tennis Letter)
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Aryna Sabalenka finished the 2025 season as World No.1 after winning 63 tour-level matches and just losing 12 times. The Belarusian star also has nearly 2,500 points lead over Iga Swiatek, who is No.2. She has now revealed how she had to abandon her plan for motherhood as she began to climb up the tennis ladder.
Sabalenka was not among the popular names during her time in the junior category of the sport. But had to work very hard to earn her breakthrough in the WTA in 2018. Four months shy of her 21st birthday in 2019, she broke into the top 10 of the WTA rankings and cemented her place among the elite group.
That period saw Sabalenka improve in her game, especially in 2022 when she was struggling with double faults on the court. But had to improve on her game working with the right coaches that mentored her to winning her first Grand Slam at the 2023 Australian Open, where she defeated Elena Rybakina in the final.
Sabalenka then claimed her second Grand Slam at the Australian Open in 2024. This year, she took her major title tally to four after defending the US Open, beating Amanda Anisimova in the final. She has become a remarkably consistent performer on the court and has dominated the women’s circuit in the past fourteen months.
After her WTA Finals loss in Riyadh, the 27-year-old sat down for an interview with Alexander Sokolovsky on his podcast. There, she reflected on how, when she was 18 years old, she had envisioned having children by the age of 25, and then coming back to the WTA circuit and continuing to win tournaments:
At 18, I thought by 25 I’d win everything I wanted. At 25, I’d have a baby, come back, and keep winning. 25 came, and I won some stuff, then I thought maybe 27 or 28. Now I’m 27 and I’m like, well, a bit later, yeah, we’ll move it. I realized I want to get the most out of my career, see how far I can go. So it’s a rough plan with a possible move. I would like to try to start a family in five years and maybe try to come back, depending on what stage I will be in my life.
This season alone, Sabalenka claimed fifteen top-10 wins, including eight over top-5 players, asserting herself as the tour’s undisputed torch-bearer. She also reached nine tournament finals, more than any player in the women’s circuit, which included three Grand Slam finals, but winning just one of them.
Former Doubles No.1 reacts to Aryna Sabalenka’s exceptional 2025 season
Aryna Sabalenka’s first final loss was at the 2025 Australian Open, where she fell to Madison Keys in three sets. She then went on to lose to Coco Gauff in the final of the French Open and to Amanda Anisimova in the semi-finals of the Wimbledon Championships. However, she battled to redeem herself at the US Open, winning her only Grand Slam this year.
Also, she was the most consistent player in the women’s circuit, failing to reach just the quarter-finals of tournaments this season. Former Doubles World No.1 Rennae Stubbs revealed during her podcast that Sabalenka has had a fantastic year on tour this season. She added that despite the final losses, the 27-year-old has had a great year:
Aryna Sabalenka, another fantastic year, finishes world number one. It’s been a long time since [somebody has] gone back-to-back, since somebody has done that as well number one. But having said that, I would venture to say that she would say it was a great year, but it wasn’t the year that she would have hope for.
Sabalenka will go on vacation and perhaps take a tequila to regroup mentally after losing to Elena Rybakina in the WTA Finals. But, she will be back on the court in late December for an exhibition clash against former World No.13 Nick Kyrgios in Dubai.
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