Aryna Sabalenka says it feels like there are no age limits anymore in tennis, given the number of veteran players enjoying success at this year’s Australian Open.
The world No.1 spoke about the topic and her desire to one day play in the sport as a mother following her third round win on Friday. Sabalenka was forced to dig deep before seeing off Austria’s Anastasia Potapova 7-6(4), 7-6(7), in a two-hour battle. It was far from a vintage performance from the top seed, who hit 44 unforced errors and dropped serve four times.
“Aryna five years ago would probably be focusing too much on the way she feels and completely lose these games,” she said about her lackluster win.
“Nowadays, with the experience, I learned a lot that it doesn’t really matter how you feel, it’s all about your mentality.
“You have to stay there, and you have to fight and you have to show your opponent that no matter how I feel, no matter what’s going on, I’ll still be there, I’ll still be fighting, and I’ll still be willing to find something that’s going to help me to be willing to fight in the match.”
Sabalenka’s latest victory now extends her impressive winning streak when it comes to playing tiebreaks at Grand Slam events. She has won 19 in a row, with her last loss occurring against Karolina Muchova at the 2023 French Open. Furthermore, it is the 13th major in a row where she has reached at least the fourth round.
At the age of 27, Sabalenka could potentially continue her career for a decade or more, given the increasing trend of players extending their careers later into their 30s. Earlier this week, Stan Wawrinka moved into the third round at the age of 40 and 38-year-old Novak Djokovic is seeded fourth in the men’s draw.
“These guys are legends, G.O.A.T.s, especially Novak. He’s been developing his game his whole career. Right now he’s really relevant with young boys. He’s playing incredible tennis.” She said in tribute.
“I feel like it depends on your physicality, mentality and approach to tennis. He’s very healthy. He’s really focused. At this age, he’s playing incredible tennis.
“There is no age anymore in sport. It depends on how you approach everything and if you have a smart team around you.”
As for if she would like to follow in the footsteps of Djokovic and co, Sabalenka explained that at some stage she would want to take time away to start a family. However, the challenge of playing on the Tour as a mother appeals to her.
“Ideally, for me, I would love to maybe have kids at 32 or something,” she said.
“But knowing me, I know that I love to accept tough challenges, so I feel like even after having a kid, I would love to challenge myself coming back and see if I still have it.
“So probably we’re going to see me being that grandma on Tour trying. Hopefully, I’ll be pushing these young girls.”
Sabalenka’s immediate plan is to try to win a third title at Melbourne Park. Awaiting her next will be Canada’s Victoria Mboko, who experienced a breakout year in 2025 by winning her first two WTA titles. Mboko outlasted Clara Tucson 7-6 (5), 5-7, 6-3 in her latest match. The upcoming clash will be their first Tour-level meeting.
