Aryna Sabalenka poised to ‘go for it’ at Roland Garros

PARIS – World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka has declared that she is ready, in body and mind, to conquer clay and take a first Roland Garros title.

“I know how to play on clay, and it’s all about being physically and mentally healthy, to go for it, and to be ready to fight,” she said ahead of the tournament’s start on May 24.

The Belarusian has won only three titles on clay, all in Madrid. Her best showing in the French Open was last year when she lost the final in three sets to Coco Gauff.

“All I can say is that I’m ready to fight, and, of course, I hope to do a little bit better than I did last year,” added Sabalenka, who turned 28 earlier in May.

Earlier this spring, she completed a victorious ‘Sunshine Double’ on the hard courts at Indian Wells and Miami, before losing momentum on clay. At Madrid, she lost in the quarter-finals to Hailey Baptiste. In Rome, she only won one match before falling to Sorana Cirstea.

“I struggled the beginning of the clay season physically, to be honest,” she admitted.

“Right now I feel 100 per cent. I’m healed everywhere and I’m ready to go.”

She also said that her improved consistency is not only the product of physical health but also of overcoming her tendency to melt down mentally on court when things did not go her way.

“My emotions were destroying my game, and my level was dropping dramatically when I would just start overreacting on everything,” she said.

“At the same time, my opponents would see that and they would play better.”

Controlling her emotions had two clear benefits, she said.

“First of all, making sure that my opponent doesn’t see what’s going on in my head, and at the same time, to perform better and to stay in the zone... it was a huge improvement over the years,” she explained.

“Mostly I’m focusing on myself and making sure that I have all of the tools I’ll need to play against all of the players. Focusing on myself really helped me to be able to adjust to each player.”

Meanwhile, Gauff is keen to sidestep any pressure that might come with starting as the defending champion as she returns to the site of her most consistent Grand Slam success.

The American comes into the tournament seeded fourth, fresh from reaching the Rome final on clay where she lost to Elina Svitolina.

At 22, she is about to play her seventh French Open.

She won her first Slam at the US Open in 2023, but Roland Garros is where Gauff has shone most consistently. She has reached the last eight in each of her last five appearances in the French capital.

Like Sabalenka, Gauff said she has worked at learning about herself.

“I have a therapist that I have been going to for a long time,” she said.

“I can be too much of a perfectionist. When I’m playing the matches, I just want to win literally every point in the most perfect way. Obviously it just doesn’t always happen for me like that all the time.

“I’m trying now to focus on the process and the ups and downs of the journey of tennis.”

Besides the duo, Polish star Iga Swiatek will also be expected to go deep at her favourite venue even if she no longer carries the same clay-court aura that took her to four French Open titles.

But she arrives buoyed by Rome, where she reached the semi-finals, showing flashes of her best form, before losing in three sets to Svitolina.

“For sure, this year, after a couple of good matches, there is (a) more positive vibe,” she said.

“I’m in the match rhythm, which is great, comparing to last year. But still, this is a totally different tournament... You need to be humble and start knowing that you’re willing to fight for every match.”

Big-hitting Elena Rybakina is seeking a third Grand Slam title following her Australian Open triumph in January and Wimbledon success in 2022.

Rybakina, who could not go past the fourth round of any Slam last year, turned things around at the WTA Finals in November and at Melbourne Park.

She started her clay season successfully defending her Stuttgart Open title last month, and has an opportunity to dethrone Sabalenka as the world No. 1. AFP, REUTERS