Aryna Sabalenka recently dealt with a shoulder injury, which left her a bit scared of getting injured again, and she spoke about it after the 2024 Cincinnati Open final.
The Belarusian player suffered a shoulder injury during her Berlin Open campaign, which ended up costing her Wimbledon participation. She didn't play at the Olympics, but it had nothing to do with the shoulder; it just happened to coincide with it.
She returned at the Citi Open in Washington, and it was a solid return, even though not perfect. She admitted to feeling some soreness in the shoulder but downplayed suggestions that something was wrong.
She declared herself fully healthy at the Canadian Open in Toronto a few days after that, but she seemingly still wasn't fully confident in her game. She was easily beaten by Amanda Anisimova, sending her early to Cincinnati.
Her week at the WTA 1000 event in Cincinnati ended up being superb, as she went all the way to win the trophy. The most impressive part of that run was her serving, which worked amazingly and carried her to the title.
She clearly was not thinking about her shoulder anymore, and she confirmed that. Earlier during her return, she was dealing with some lingering fear about injuring herself again, which she revealed after lifting the trophy.
"I would say that was a challenging time for me and for the first time I experienced something like fear, having a fear of getting injured again. That was tricky. In those two tournaments I was overprotecting my shoulder."
"I didn't want to straighten my arm that far. I was trying to keep it close. It was tricky, I was fighting with my head obviously and that was an interesting experience."
Getting to this point was a journey for Sabalenka, but as with any journey, the final destination is the most important part. She finished her journey with a trophy and a superb showing in the final, which included a great serve, for which the shoulder is crucial.
That's about as ideal as it can get for her ahead of the US Open. She will arrive in New York feeling good about her body and game.
"With every match I played I felt better and better in my shoulder, more confident that I'm not going to injure it again. So I think that was the most tricky part. That's why I was frustrated and something new was happening for me and I'm really happy that I was able to separate myself from that injury."
The worst thing that could have happened to Sabalenka was if she arrived in New York, fearful of her shoulder. It would severely limit her game, but luckily for her, quite the opposite will happen.
This way, she will arrive without any worries and will try to play her best game, which can carry her deep into the event.
0 Comments