Sabalenka urged to better control emotions after Grand Slam setback

Aryna Sabalenka has been told she must “manage her emotions better” after finishing a Grand Slam season without a major title for the first time since 2022.

The Belarusian’s recent stretch has been difficult at the very top of the game. Within days, she surrendered the No 1 ranking to Elena Rybakina and then lost to the 27-year-old in the US Open final. That result added to a troubling pattern, with Sabalenka now defeated in four of her last five Grand Slam finals.

Questions about her mentality have followed several heavy losses in the biggest matches. In last year’s French Open final, she appeared unsettled by the wind before falling to Coco Gauff. Twelve months later, at Roland Garros, she suffered another damaging defeat, dropping 10 games in a row against Diana Shnaider in the quarter-finals.

Jessica Pegula, who reached the US Open semi-finals, believes the world No 2 performs best when she is angry. Patrick Mouratoglou sees it differently.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, he said, “I’m not here to give advice, but she definitely needs to figure out how to manage her emotions better.

“I think that’s the only thing that prevents her from being a number two in the world now and someone who doesn’t win Grand Slams anymore to someone who’s gonna win many more and who potentially can come back to number one.”

Mouratoglou, who has worked with Serena Williams and currently coaches Stefanos Tsitsipas part-time, also drew a comparison between Sabalenka and John McEnroe, while placing Elena Rybakina alongside Bjorn Borg. He said the difference is crucial: McEnroe could raise his level when he was angry, but Sabalenka, in his view, loses control of her tennis when emotions take over.

He added, “What I find very interesting is the fact that this final had the exact opposite in terms of personality. And they’re number one and number two in the world. One is fire. Do I have to say who the fire is? Aryna Sabalenka. One is ice. Do I have to say who the ice is? It’s Elena Rybakina.

“One is so calm, so much in control of her emotions. One is so fiery, so much out of control of her emotions. It reminds me of McEnroe and Borg. At that time, you had the ice; you had Borg, not one word, always in control of his emotions.

“And you had the fire. McEnroe breaking rackets, getting angry. Now, there is one difference between John McEnroe and Aryna Sabalenka. When McEnroe was getting angry, he was a much better player than when he was not angry.

“When Aryna Sabalenka gets angry, she loses her tennis. So for her to manage her emotion is such an important key compared to someone that plays his best tennis when he gets angry.”