Aryna Sabalenka, a fifth-seeded Belarusian, defeated Elena Rybakina in the Australian Open final by rallying to claim her maiden Grand Slam singles victory. To win her first singles Grand Slam, the fifth seed upset the 22nd seed by scores of 4-6, 6-3, and 6-4.
Who is Aryna Sabalenka?
Aryna Siarhiejena Sabalenka is a professional tennis player from Belarus who was born on May 5, 1998. The Women’s Tennis Association has ranked her as high as No. 2 in the world in singles and No. 1 in the world in doubles (WTA).
Sergey, her father, was a hockey player. When the National Tennis Academy in Minsk opened in 2014, she began her training there.
Sabalenka began her career later than most on the ITF Junior Circuit, having debuted earlier in the Tennis Europe U14 and U16 tournaments. Until 2013, when she was 15 years old and playing in Estonia’s Grade-4 Tallink Cup, she had never participated in the main draw of an ITF event. With her native Vera Lapko as her partner, Sabalenka won her maiden ITF doubles championship at the Grade-5 Alatan Tour Cup in Belarus in late 2013.
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She qualified for the Dubai Open in February 2017 and participated in her first WTA Tour main draw match, she did not win in her first WTA Tour match until Wimbledon in July.
She again qualified for the main draw for her first Grand Slam and beat Irina Khromacheva in the first round. Following this accomplishment, Sabalenka defeated No. 34 Lauren Davis, the 2016 runner-up and the highest-ranked woman she had defeated at the time, in the Washington Open.
Sabalenka sought to advance to a Grand Slam singles quarterfinal for the first time in her career in 2021 by competing at the Australian Open. Serena Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam champion, defeated her in three sets in the fourth round. Elise Mertens and Sabalenka took first place in the doubles event. On February 22, 2021, Sabalenka became the first player in her career to reach the top spot in the doubles rankings as a result of winning the match.
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Sabalenka won one Grand Slam singles title at the 2023 Australian Open and two Grand Slam doubles titles at the 2019 US Open and the 2021 Australian Open, respectively.
Twelve of her 18 career victories have come in singles, with the other six coming in doubles.
