Reputations matter in any sport and Aryna Sabalenka now has a lot of work to do to rebuild her aura are a truly shocking collapse at the French Open.
In a tournament that has been laced with upsets in the men’s and women’s draws, Sabalenka’s presence as the world No 1 gave the tournament a sense of order that suggested it would have an ending that made some sense.
Yet as the Belarusian lost 10 straight games to sink to what can be described as a shocking 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 defeat against the unheralded Diana Shnaider, this bizarre tournament had arguably it’s most shocking moment yet.
“No thoughts, no emotions,” said Sabalenka afterwards. “I just want to quit tennis right now. We’ll see in few days. Hopefully I’ll get back on track mentally.
“I don’t know when was the last time that happened to me that I lost 10 games in a row.
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“I guess mentally I got into a very deep, deep, dark hole over there, and I just couldn’t get back mentally on track.
“This is something that I actually have to step back and try to find a solution, because I just am so tired of me losing some matches not in the best way, just because I was overemotional. I just want to go in a room and smash everything.”
Sabalenka’s honesty in her press conference could only be admired, but the longer-term impact of this horrible collapse could be more damaging than this one embarrassing demise.
While her reputation for allowing her emotions to get the better of her in the biggest matches of them all is nothing new, we have never seen Sabalanka or any world No 1 collapse in the manner she did on Wednesday.
This was not just a dip in form in tricky, windy conditions. No, this was far more serious.
As Sabalenka openly admitted, she was in a horrible place emotionally long before the final point was lost and this match will ensure that her aura has been shaken.
The power and presence this impressive athlete brings onto a tennis court is a massive part of her armoury, with opponents struggling to believe they can cope with her power for long enough to beat her.
Yet the defeat against Shnaider confirmed that for all the improvements Sabalenka has made to her game and her mindset in recent years, she is still vulnerable when pressure is applied in a Grand Slam tournament.
She may never lose ten games in succession as she did against Shnaider for the rest of her career, but her opponents at Wimbledon next month will know that if they wait for long enough, there is a chance Sabalenka will beat herself even if they are not capable of doing it themselves.
We can’t take anything away from Shnaider, who was magnificent when her moment to strike arrived, but this was a match Sabalenka should have won and she only has herself to blame for allowing the momentum to switch.
Her comment that she “wanted to quit tennis” was a heat of the moment remark that will be replaced with determination to put right the latest nightmare she suffered at Roland Garros.
Yet the scar tissue from defeats like this latest setback for Sabalenka are hard to remove and when the pressure is applied again at Wimbledon and the US Open, both she and her opponents have been reminded that her vulnerabilities are still very close to the surface.
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