Sabalenka bids to rediscover form at intriguing US Open

By

BBC Sport tennis quality reporter

All was agleam successful Aryna Sabalenka's satellite erstwhile she completed a uncommon 'Sunshine Double' earlier this season.

Becoming lone the 5th pistillate to triumph the Indian Wells and Miami titles back-to-back, Sabalenka emphasised her presumption arsenic the ascendant subordinate connected the WTA Tour and created a 3,000-point pb astatine the apical of the satellite rankings.

But a hard play rapidly followed - seemingly retired of obscurity - leaving the 28-year-old Belarusian clinging connected to her presumption going into the US Open, which starts connected Sunday.

Two-time defending champion Sabalenka returns to New York with a 17-7 win-loss grounds since the Miami triumph, including a chastening French Open quarter-final exit and a disheartening decision in the Wimbledon 4th round.

It is simply a grounds acold beneath the four-time large winner's lofty standards.

With 2,000 points to support astatine Flushing Meadows and Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina present trailing by lone 434, Sabalenka indispensable triumph again to widen her 99-week tally arsenic the satellite fig one.

Asked if she felt assured she tin rediscover her mojo connected the hard courts connected which she has thrived, Sabalenka said: "Absolutely. These pugnacious lessons are decidedly going to marque maine way, mode stronger and moving adjacent harder."

Sabalenka's 4 Grand Slam singles titles - 2 Australian Open and 2 US Open triumphs, each connected hard courts - are much than astir players tin imagination of.

However, she has besides mislaid 4 large finals and six semi-finals, contempt a consistency connected the biggest stages that is unrivalled among her peers.

The interest successful caller months has been Sabalenka's intelligence absorption disappearing successful little pressurised situations.

This was astir precocious evident successful her Cincinnati Open fourth-round decision by 20-year-old Czech hostile Sara Bejlek. Sabalenka led 5-1 successful a first-set tie-break and 4-1 successful the 2nd set, but continued to deficiency composure successful the rallies arsenic Bejlek rallied to triumph 7-6 (9-7) 6-4.

At her erstwhile tourney successful Toronto, she mislaid to Russian satellite fig 19 Ekaterina Alexandrova successful the past 16 arsenic her service crumbled.

During the clay-court swing, Sabalenka capitulated aft winning the archetypal acceptable against Hailey Baptiste successful Madrid, Sorana Cirstea successful Rome and, astir notably, Diana Shnaider astatine Roland Garros.

"I enactment connected my intelligence broadside of the game. I've been trying to reset my caput and to travel backmost stronger," a bullish Sabalenka said successful New York.

"It's lone a substance of clip for maine to travel back."

The drop-off successful Sabalenka's results person opened the doorway for Rybakina, who bushed the Belarusian to triumph the Australian Open successful January, to instrumentality implicit arsenic satellite fig one.

Rybakina mightiness not adjacent person to triumph a lucifer astatine Flushing Meadows to bash that, arsenic she has less ranking points to support than Sabalenka.

However, determination are questions implicit her fittingness due to the fact that of an ankle wounded sustained successful the Cincinnati quarter-finals.

Rybakina tin unafraid the fig 1 ranking if her nearest rivals - Sabalenka, Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff - bash not triumph the title.

If Sabalenka does clasp the title, Rybakina would inactive besides emergence to the apical by reaching the semi-finals.

Pegula, 32, has been ultra-consistent for respective seasons without landing a large title, but the 2024 finalist hopes her runs to the Washington and Cincinnati finals volition supply the level for different ace astatine her location Slam.

Gauff, who bushed Pegula to the Cincinnati trophy past week, already has the acquisition of winning successful New York aft claiming her archetypal large determination successful 2023.

Twelve months ago, the 22-year-old American's crippled was clouded by uncertainty but returns with much assurance and fluidity successful her serve.

Beneath the starring quartet, the remainder of the apical 10 besides clasp either a Grand Slam oregon WTA 1,000 rubric - a radical led by French Open victor Mirra Andreeva, Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova and six-time large victor Iga Swiatek.

"You tin conscionable spot however the extent is beauteous crazy," said Pegula.

For the 3rd Grand Slam successful a row, the rivalry betwixt Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz has been enactment connected hold.

The brace swept each 8 large titles betwixt them successful 2024 and 2025, with Alcaraz extending that tally with triumph astatine this year's Australian Open.

But the brace person not competed astatine the aforesaid Grand Slam since.

Alcaraz missed the French Open and Wimbledon with a wrist injury, and makes his comeback from a four-month lack successful New York.

A time aft the 23-year-old Spaniard announced his program to return, Sinner revealed helium had been ruled retired with a genu issue.

"It's benignant of weird. We are not going spot each different for, like, six months now, 7 months," said Alcaraz.

Sinner's lack and the uncertainty astir Alcaraz's fittingness volition galvanise the remainder of the chasing battalion - peculiarly 39-year-old Novak Djokovic.

The Serb great, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, insists helium has not enactment an "expiry date" connected his bonzer career. He continues to enactment himself successful the premix for titles arsenic helium looks to yet onshore a standalone grounds 25th triumph which would determination him wide of Australia's Margaret Court connected the all-time list.

He has reached astatine slightest the semi-finals successful six of the past 7 Slams, but has not gone each the mode since triumphing astatine the 2023 US Open.

Germany's Alexander Zverev leads the seedings arsenic helium looks to scope a 3rd consecutive large final, having won his archetypal Slam astatine the French Open earlier losing to Sinner astatine Wimbledon.

Canadian Open champion Ben Shelton and Cincinnati finalist Frances Tiafoe pb a beardown American challenge, portion 2024 finalist Taylor Fritz is different anticipation susceptible of ending a 23-year hold for a location men's champion.