Aryna Sabalenka made it to the 2024 US Open final, again, and this time, she's ready to win it, unlike last year, which she felt didn’t go her way because she wasn't prepared.
Sabalenka looks like a proper champion at the New York Slam, judging by how well she's played at this year's US Open. Outside of one poor set against Ekaterina Alexandrova, the Belarusian has played a superb event to reach the final.
She won most of her matches comfortably and never looked in trouble. It's a continuation of the strong form that started two weeks earlier at the WTA 1000 event in Cincinnati, where Sabalenka dominated, smashing everyone en route to the trophy.
The only thing standing between her and the US Open trophy now is a player she bested in that Cincinnati Open final—Jessica Pegula. There are similarities between this year's and last year's final at the US Open.
Sabalenka faced an American player last year and will do so this year as well, which won't be easy. The crowd will be against her, and quite openly so, but she doesn't care about that. She learned a painful lesson last year, and now she's ready to win the trophy.
"No. I don’t really care. Because today was a good test of the crowd cheering for my opponent. Even if it’s going to be Pegula, I don’t care. I’m ready to face whoever. Lesson from last year learned."
The unique factor for Sabalenka was that she faced an American player in the semi-final this year as well because she played against Emma Navarro. That certainly helped her understand what would happen in the final as well, but she also had the experience from last year.
Sabalenka had a couple of good runs in New York, ending on a sour note, and she learned from those losses. In her mind, she simply wasn't ready to win, but she feels ready to do that this year.
"No, that's not about me. Yeah, I had really tough lessons here in the past… I think I had so many opportunities here, but I didn't use them for different reasons. I wasn't ready. Then I got emotional. Then I just couldn't handle the crowd. I felt like I just missed opportunity,"
Tough losses can be quite depressing for a player because getting over them might be tricky, but for Sabalenka, it's the opposite. Tough losses motivate her quite a bit, and it showed at this year's US Open. She's really motivated and determined to get lift that trophy this year.
"You know, like tough losses never make me feel depressed, like, not thinking like of not coming back on the tournament. It only motivates me to come back and to try one more time, try harder, and work harder on some things which maybe didn't work in the past. I'm still hoping to hold that beautiful trophy."
Winning the match easily won't be easy against Jessica Pegula, but Sabalenka is favored for a reason. She certainly doesn't lack belief that she will be able to do it, especially after last year's disappointment, and learning how to handle the crowd better.
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