Sabalenka, Serena weigh Slam pressure, maintain AO collision course

Aryna Sabalenka is on another winning streak after scoring a 7-6(5), 6-3 second-round win over Daria Kasatkina at the Australian Open. The 15 matches she won dating back to last fall made her an early favorite ahead of the first major tournament of 2021, but the Belarusian believes she learned more from her lone loss last week than from any of the three titles she’s taken home since September.

“I think it was good…well, it wasn’t really good, but it was a good lesson for me to lose against Kaia Kanepi,” she said of her defeat to the Estonian veteran at the Gippsland Trophy. “It kind of put me back in reality and made me work a little bit more. It was really good for me, and that’s why I’ve already won two matches here, because I’m understanding how everything happens again. I would say that every day is a new day, but when you keep winning, you start thinking you can’t lose, so I’m actually really happy I lost that match against Kanepi.

“I shouldn’t say that, but it was a really good lesson. It was better to lose that one, switch off, and understand that I have to work and that anything can happen. It made me push myself into my work, and helped me this week.”

Though Sabalenka has won nine WTA titles and arrives in Australia firmly ensconced in the Top 10, her major resume still leaves something to be desired, with just one trip to the second week to show for 12 main draw appearances.

Those past disappointments have similarly inspired the 22-year-old to tinker with how best to handle the glare of the Grand Slam spotlight, including a decision to avoid Melbourne Park on her off days.

“There’s a lot of people here, so even if you’re trying not to put pressure on yourself, the situation is doing it for you. I’m trying to stay more at the hotel, go for nice walks around there in the evening, cook for myself, and switch off. That’s helping me stay in the moment, be at a Grand Slam, but also understand that it’s just another tournament.”

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Even when she seems invincible, Sabalenka, who capped off her Wednesday with a three-set doubles win alongside Elise Mertens, admits she is still a work in progress, pointing to several moments against Kasatkina that threatened her ever-improving focus.

“I’m trying to stay calm, but sometimes, I’m still getting overexcited and over-crazy at the Grand Slams. I handled it pretty well, and that’s why I won that first set; every time, I was able to bring myself back. I’m just trying to stay calm. I don’t want to say I feel calm at a Grand Slam because the nerves are still there; I’m just trying to work better with them.”

Sabalenka is learning that thought is, indeed, the enemy of execution—at least according to 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams, who is undeniably an expert at going deep at big tournaments. In 20 appearances dating back to 2014, the former world No. 1 has made the fourth round or better 17 times, and has reached four finals since giving birth to daughter Alexis Olympia.

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A possible fourth round opponent for Sabalenka, Williams dismissed Serbia’s Nina Stojanovic, 6-3, 6-0, and spoke about the importance of staying present in her post-match press conference.

“I'm still just trying to find that balance sometimes,” admitted the seven-time Australian Open champion. “Even with my serve, I over-think it. It's just like, I'm not hitting it. But when I don't think about it and I'm just like, whatever, it goes in. But that's clearly not the way to do it. So it's really about a balance.”

Echoing Sabalenka, Williams points to the hours of practice necessary to hone her on-court instincts, those which have famously put her past the Open Era record for Grand Slam titles and within distance of Margaret Court’s all-time total.

Still, she cautions, there’s a risk of over-thinking over-thinking itself.

“I just think when I'm not thinking it's more or less like I'm just totally relaxed, but again, it's a balance because sometimes that's a good time to slack off and to lose focus. So, it's really about finding that key balance there for me.”

Williams will next play Anastasia Potapova in a rematch of their first-round clash Down Under last year, while Sabalenka will take on American Ann Li, herself no stranger to a streak after the Grampians Trophy co-champion won a sixth straight match against Alizé Cornet.

After dealing with the Melbourne heat through two more wins of her own, the No. 7 seed sounded ready for Li’s firepower—emphasizing the Grand Slam stakes without (it bears repeating) over-thinking it.

“The weather app shows it was 24-26 degrees during my singles match, but here in Australia, 24 feels like 35. It was really hot, and especially against Daria, who was making me move and play long rallies. Sometimes, I didn’t have the power to hit the ball. I was just pushing myself, and thinking, ‘This is the tournament where you have to push yourself no matter what.’”