LONDON: What do Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner have in common? They have both held hitting sessions with women’s world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Sabalenka, who is seeking her maiden Wimbledon title at the age of 27, shed light on her decision to hit with the men following her opening win at The All England Club. In the first round, she dismissed Canada’s Carson Branstine 6-1, 7-5, to claim her 50th win whilst being at the top of the WTA standings. Becoming the ninth woman to do so since the WTA ranking system was created.
As to how the concept of hitting with the opposite sex is helping her, Sabalenka explains it has enabled her to look at her own game from a different perspective.
“It’s amazing. You play with them, you look on that side and you see the difference. You see the different approaches to the balls. You’re learning,” she told reporters.
“I think automatically you start reflecting on what’s happening on that side. I think it really helped my tennis, to be honest.
“Now there are some balls that I used to struggle with a little. Right now, I kind of understand a little bit better how to adjust to those balls.
“I feel like even today in the match and the practice after hitting with the guys, I felt like I improved a couple of things in my game.
“I’m super happy that I was able to hit with them because I learn, I think, a lot.”
Sabalenka’s hope is that her latest technique will help her end a run of finishing second-best at the majors this season. She was beaten in the Australian Open final by Madison Keys before losing a three-set battle against Coco Gauff at the French Open title match.
The Belarussian also has the added pressure of trying to live up to her status of being the best player in the world in terms of ranking. A job she admits has gotten easier with age.
“I think maybe if I was 20 years old and world No. 1, it would be really difficult for me to handle that pressure. I think I’m quite an experienced player and I’m not focusing on that. I’m trying to focus on myself, get better in my game, on and off the court,” she explained.
“I’m just trying to bring my best tennis every time, just trying to fight for my dreams. I’m not thinking of being world No. 1 and being one of the favourites.”
So far in her career, Sabalenka’s best Wimbledon result was reaching the semifinals in 2021 and 2023. She didn’t play last year due to a shoulder injury.
