World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka shared some pertinent thoughts on the scheduling of the women’s tennis season after brushing aside Naomi Osaka 6–2, 6–4 to reach the quarter-finals at the BNP Paribas Open.
After taking just over 80 minutes to dispatch her fellow four-time Grand Slam champion, the Belarusian at first said she was happy with most elements of the WTA Tour, including the scheduling.
But when asked directly about the scheduling and her absence from some mandatory WTA 1000 events, she opened up with a resounding reply.
“Scheduling tournaments? Yeah. Well, it’s a tough question. Me, personally, I wouldn’t have any tournaments in February after Australian Open, but it’s all, you know, scheduling is such a tough thing.
“I would just take off this mandatory situation, because if you go far in one tournament, you just physically, it’s not good for health to go and play another one because it’s mandatory. I would just let the player choose where they want to compete and play, because if you make it far, the Australian Open, it’s too soon to play Middle East swing.
“So I feel like, it’s too much, like, we got to just lower that number. It’s too much.”
The comments from the World No. 1 will surely make ripples in a conversation that has been brewing for far too long without any signs of progress, with many top players on both the WTA and ATP pulling out of 1000 events over the last 12 months to preserve their bodies or manage existing injuries.
Her performance in the match itself was spectacular, especially in the first set, where she put relentless pressure on Osaka’s serve, converting two of seven break points.
When asked if there was extra pressure playing as the World No. 1, Sabalenka reflected on how it motivates her to rise to the challenge even more.
“Well, I feel like it’s – I mean, of course it’s a pressure, but at the same time, that’s how I get better, because they go out there, they have to do something extra. I feel like that’s the way they feel and that’s what they do, and that’s how I get better and stronger.
“I feel like they do, like, extra, and I feel that on important points, they gonna drop the level. This is where I can step in, and this is how I basically, yeah, become a better player.”
Osaka did not perform at her best and is still working to find consistent form since returning to the tour, but the Belarusian reflected on the game and how things have changed since their last meeting in the 2018 US Open last 16, which Osaka won on her way to her maiden Slam title.
“Can you believe for so many years on tour we only played once? But I feel like I started doing better when she got pregnant. I think that’s why we didn’t have much opportunities to face each other, and I feel like, pretty sure that we’re gonna face each other many more times.
“Yeah, I changed a lot. So many things happened to me, and I became a better player, better person, learned a lot about myself. I’m in better control over my emotions, I’m more experienced, I got some Grand Slams in my belt.
“It’s just like I feel I’m completely different person right now from when we played against each other.”
Sabalenka will face either Victoria Mboko or Amanda Anisimova in the quarter-final and took time out to praise both potential opponents while expressing her eagerness to go up against either player
“I love that they aggressive, I feel that both of them are fighters. I played a lot of matches against Amanda, just ones against Mboko, but it’s been tough battles against both. It’s been really aggressive tennis. It’s been fun playing both. I’m super excited facing, doesn’t matter who’s gonna win the match.”
