“I played really great tennis,” Defending Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka critically self-assesses her tough loss against Elena Rybakina in Brisbane
Aryna Sabalenka reflects on her loss against Elena Rybakina in the final of the 2024 Brisbane International ahead of the Australian Open.
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Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina (Source: Imago)
Aryna Sabalenka recently lost to Elena Rybakina in the final of the 2024 Brisbane International, her first tournament of the year.
Despite her defeat against the Kazakh, Sabalenka is pretty optimistic ahead of the Australian Open. In a recent interview, the World No. 2 said that her pre-season went exactly as she had expected it to, and apart from the result of the final, she was satisfied with her performance in the Brisbane International.
Furthermore, the Belarusian is thankful that she has one week to prepare for the Australian Open, during which she can fill in the gaps she had in the final against Elena Rybakina, i.e., work on her flaws.
Yeah, I think those matches... I mean, the finals, Elena just played incredible tennis. She just crushed it. I tried to do my best, & I'm just thankful for those three games, as I said. Before the finals, I think I played really great tennis.Sabalenka said, praising the performance of her opponent to every bit.
The World No. 2 lost the match 0-6, 3-6 in straight sets. En route to the final, however, she defeated strong opponents Daria Kasatkina and Viktoria Azarenka.
Everything worked on the pre-season. Everything worked in matches. That's what we are happy with. Even though the finals didn't go well, we still have another week. Now it's two more days to go. After the finals, was another week to work on those mistakes & just prepare myself as good as I can for Melbourne.Continuing her train og thought, she added.
Aryna Sabalenka takes on Ella Seidel in the first round of the Australian Open
Aryna Sabalenka will face Germany’s Ella Seidel in the first round of the tournament. The two have not faced each other before, and this will be their first head-to-head match.
Ella Seidel had a perfect record in her three matches in the qualifiers, but facing WTA World No. 2 is a different level of threat altogether that no one is usually prepared for.
Despite her loss against Elena Rybakina, Sabalenka looked positive in her press conference, and she is heading into the Australian Open on an optimistic note.
She is hands-down one of the favorites in the tournament this year, alongside Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, and Elena Rybakina. The Belarusian’s title defense will be exciting to watch.
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Rishab Dutta
(794 Articles Published)