SUMMARY
- Aryna Sabalenka is one of the best players on the tour at the moment.
- Her former coach revealed that she struggled a lot initially, before she found success on the circuit.
Aryna Sabalenka has established herself as one of the best players on the tour at present. The Belarusian star has risen through the ranks and firmly lodged herself in the upper echelons of the WTA. Sabalenka did not find success very easily, though, as her former coach, Maciej Domka, revealed. He gave a peek into the hurdles that Aryna had to overcome to get to this point.
Maciej is a former Polish tennis player-turned-coach. He has worked with several stars, including Alicja Rosolska and Urszula Radwanska. Domka met Sabalenka at the national academy in Minsk when she was in her late teens and struggling.
The coach spoke of Sabalenka’s success and how far she has come since her early days at the academy. He recalled Aryna being diligent and incredibly hardworking. Sabalenka’s hard work was not paying off at the time, though, and her results were average at best. However, about a year later, Aryna started getting her desired results, and she was hungry for more.
Domka divulged how Aryna was alone throughout this period, and her parents never showed up. “From what I know, her dad had some legal issues. Aryna was alone in all this. I have the impression that this was also her internal motivation, pushing her forward,” he said (via sport.pl).
Maciej further revealed that Aryna let her anger fuel her. He does think that her anger also held her back and did not let her achieve her desired results. Once Sabalenka tasted success at the ITF tournaments, there was no looking back.
Aryna Sabalenka is not the girl she was at 18 years old. She is now a two-time Grand Slam champion, and she even fulfilled her promise to her father. Sabalenka is a fierce competitor and is improving the level of women’s tennis.
Aryna Sabalenka has forged some incredible rivalries
Sabalenka is one of the toughest competitors on the WTA circuit at present. She has developed an incredible rivalry with Iga Swiatek, and Domka feels the sport needed someone to “raise the bar.”
Swiatek and Sabalenka go neck-and-neck as world no. 1 and no. 2, respectively. Whenever they lock horns, it is entertaining, and they bring out the best in each other. Maciej feels that Swiatek needed a worthy competitor like the Belarusian player.
He even likened them to the Big 3 of tennis: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. The trio always pushed each other to perform better, and he sees it with Swiatek and Sabalenka.
With titles and rankings on the line, the two of them always give their best on the court. “The competition between them has a positive impact on the development of each tennis player individually,” he said.
Aryna Sabalenka emphatically won the Australian Open last month and doubled her major title count. She will try to add many more to her name as the season progresses.