Aryna Sabalenka came up short in her pursuit to win the US Open, but she left the Big Apple as the number one player in the world.
The US Open didn't conclude how she wanted, but it's been a good experience for Sabalenka. There are worse ways to lose a Grand Slam final than to a rising super-talent playing on home soil with 20,000 people backing her.
Her consolation prize was finally getting to be number one on the WTA Tour, a dream of hers, and not just hers. It was her late father's big dream, which she achieved after years of hard work. The evolution of Sabalenka has been fascinating to observe.
Noted coach Darren Cahill looked at it from a coaching perspective, which is his speciality. For a while, it seemed like Sabalneka would never be a Grand Slam champion, but after seemingly hitting a low point in her career with her serving woes, the Belarusian became a champion just one year later.
Cahill had some ideas as to why, revealing them in a recent episode of the Advantage Connors Podcast.
While she's had good coaching, the real reason she's been able to step up is she is taking matters into her own hands and she's taken responsibility for everything. She isn't blaming anyone for anything. If she serves a double fault, 'My fault. No, I gotta fix that. I've gotta get out on the practice courts and work out why I'm serving these double faults'.
Being around the Tour allows Cahill to see things fans don't necessarily see. She's known as a hard worker, and Cahill confirmed that, describing her as an incredibly hard-working player who pushes herself all the time to become better.
She works incredibly hard off the court. She pushed herself to be a much better athlete. Everyone always knew she's got incredible weapons, and whether or not she was able to harness those weapons and put them into play time and time again to be consistent enough. I thought she had a much better chance to win a Major than she did at being the No. 1 player in the world.
Simply because, the No. 1 player in the world is tougher. Fewer players are able to do it, 'cause you need to be consistent over a long period of time.
0 Comments