'I Would Just Leave': Sabalenka After Battling Through Double Fault Struggles At US Open
WTA
Aryna Sabalenka needed to wrestle with a few of her old demons as she beat Maryna Zanevska in her US Open first-round match.
Sabalenka is certainly a very different player these days. Now, she is a lot more capable of bringing her margins in, being more patient from the baseline, and after some modification with the motion, her serve has developed into one of the biggest weapons in the women's game in the last couple of seasons.
With that being said, every so often, the Belarusian shows a few glimpses of her older self and the inconsistencies to her game that were before she became the Australian Open champion this year.
Those demons revolve around the second serve and her previous tendency to serve upward of 20 double faults a match. In her first-round win, she struck eight double faults, and joked about her struggles in her on-court interview.
"Thank you guys for keep staying. If I would be you, after the third double fault, I would just leave this stadium. So thank you so much for staying and being patient."
The World No.2 also provided a bit more information about how she felt on the court and the challenges that such humid conditions had on her.
"It was tough....tough start it was so humid. I mean, I couldn't hold my racket, so I'm really glad I was able to get through the situation and get this win. I'm just super happy with this win."
Sabalenka essentially worked her way through the match by winning really ugly, and that is something that the Belarusian has got much better at since gaining more experience at the top of the game.
The double faults may appear from time to time, but her greater willingness to execute with better rally tolerance combined with her overwhelming firepower has turned her into the player she is today.
