Former Tennis Player Admits he was Laughed at When he Predicted Aryna Sabalenka Would Win Grand Slams
Aryna Sabalenka first broke into the top 10 in 2019, four years before winning her maiden Grand Slam.
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Aryna Sabalenka (Image via X/The Tennis Letter)
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Aryna Sabalenka has become one of the most dominant figures in the women’s circuit for the past two seasons. She has solidified her place at the top of the WTA rankings this season and has already claimed the year-end World No.1. Vladimir Voltchkov has revealed that he predicted her rise to the top but was laughed at.
Sabalenka was not among the famous rising youngsters in the juniors before turning professional. The 27-year-old broke into the top 10 for the first time in 2019, but was still known to struggle with double faults on the court.
Her poor service game was transformed into her lethal weapon on the court, and she used it to claim her first Grand Slam title at the 2023 Australian Open after beating Elena Rybakina in the final. Currently, she has won four major titles, all coming from hard courts in Melbourne and the US Open in New York.
This season, the Belarusian star proved her doubters wrong by claiming her only Grand Slam of the season at the US Open after beating Amanda Anisimova in straight sets. She’s ranked World No.1 in the WTA and leads her arch-rival Iga Swiatek by 1,675 points. Sabalenka is one of the favorites to win the WTA Finals in Riyadh.
Voltchkov, who reached the semi-finals of the 2000 Wimbledon Championships, revealed to Tennis Gazette that he was laughed at by people when he tipped Sabalenka to become a great player in the future. He added that he had made the prediction years before Sabalenka broke into the top 10:
You could tell right away, and you can probably find some home interviews, some people were laughing at me. I think it was 2016 or 2017, and we went on national TV back at home during one of the Fed Cup matches, they went, ‘What do you think about the potential of Aryna [Sabalenka]?’ I said I have no doubt that she’s a top 10 player and if things come together pretty well, she’s definitely a Grand Slam contender, potentially number one.
Sabalenka has four titles this season but has reached the final of eight tournaments, including three Grand Slams. She finished as a runner-up at the Australian Open and French Open after losing to Madison Keys and Coco Gauff, respectively. But, she then made her mark at the US Open in New York.
Former tennis player is confident Aryna Sabalenka will win at least 10 Grand Slam titles before retiring
Aryna Sabalenka is yet to win a Grand Slam title on natural surfaces. All four of her major titles have come on hard courts. The closest she got to winning outside hard courts was at the clay-court Grand Slam at Roland Garros. There, she reached the final before losing to two-time major champion Coco Gauff in three sets.
Sabalenka will hope to win more Grand Slams in her career but most especially on natural surfaces. During the aforementioned interview, Vladimir Voltchkov revealed that he’s confident Sabalenka will continue to pick major titles. He predicted she would win at least 10 Grand Slams on tour:
I believe that Aryna will definitely be at least a 10-time Slam champion. Her game is definitely getting better and better and stronger. So I believe she is a 10 Slam girl. I might sound strange now, but I believe she still, as of now, has perhaps underachieved.
Sabalenka has almost secured her place in the semi-finals of the ongoing WTA Finals after claiming two consecutive victories. The World No.1 defeated Jasmine Paolini and Jessica Pegula to sit top of Steffi Graf’s group. However, she will still face Coco Gauff in the last group match.
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