Coach Anton Dubrov confirms getting to the world No. 1 spot will be Aryna Sabalenka’s biggest goal for the remainder of the season but also underlines that the key thing right now is to recover well after a physically and mentally demanding US Open run.
10 days ago, the Belarusian tennis superstar became a three-time Grand Slam champion after winning the final Major of the year at Flushing Meadows.
Now, the 26-year-old is two Slam titles behind Iga Swiatek but also 2,169 ranking points. When it comes to the Year-End No. 1 race, that battle is pretty tight since the Pole has collected 8,285 points this year while Sabalenka gathered 7,876.
Last year, the Belarusian lost the battle for the world No. 1 ranking and the Year-End No. 1 at the WTA Finals. This time, she is hoping the outcome will be different.
Aryna Sabalenka© YouTube screenshot
Dubrov highlights Sabalenka has set her eyes on overtaking Swiatek at No. 1
“The goal is first to be fit and healthy, because it’s going to take a while to recover. The main goal for us this season is to finish on a high note. Right now, I would say we can talk about the No 1 spot, to finish the year as No 1 is a really cool goal. But as I said, this [run in New York] took so much energy and emotions so first of all we need to also learn how we can recover as fast as we can and set those goals. Because everyone has goals and says, ‘I want to win four Slams and finish No 1’. That’s a cool goal and you can do it but it just takes you a while to manage it,” Dubrov told The National.
After the 23-year-old spent 75 consecutive weeks at the top spot, the new three-time Grand Slam champion overtook her after the 2023 US Open. But in her first stint as the world No. 1, the two-time Australian Open winner spent just eight weeks there.
It remains to be seen if Sabalenka can make it past Swiatek on the ranking list in the remainder of the season.