Aryna Sabalenka is ‘trying new things’ to avoid any future repeat of what happened to her at the French Open earlier this month.
The world No.1 entered Roland Garros as one of the key title contenders before suffering a massive implosion during her quarter-final clash with Diana Shnaider. Sabalenka looked to be in control after being a set and 4-1 up on her Russian opponent. However, a dramatic turn of events later in the match saw Sabalenka lose nine games in a row as she exited the tournament. In the decider, she produced 17 unforced errors and won less than 40% of points behind her serve.
Sabalenka is set to return to action this week at the Berlin Open, which will be her first event on the grass this season. In recent weeks, she has sought advice from her former psychologist to address what happened in Paris and where she goes from now.
“We had a lot of chats with the team. I called my psychologist that I used to work with. It just felt like I needed to talk through everything I’ve been going through in the last I-don’t-know-how-many years,” Sabalenka said during a conversation with Bounces in Berlin on Monday.
“It was really helpful. I kind of changed a lot of things, and I’m trying a lot of new things right now. I feel like I need to figure out what’s happening, sometimes, in those matches to [be able to] move on and to avoid these situations happening.”
Elaborating further, the four-time Grand Slam champion says she is in ‘a searching process’ at the moment. But what is it that Sabalenka is searching for?
“I’ve tried to dig deeper in my thoughts to find what’s actually happening in those matches,” she said.
“I was going through all of the matches that I felt like—not like I should have won—but [where] I felt I had more opportunities and I missed them.
“So I’m just trying to kind of dig deep in my brain—which is probably not a good idea. But let’s see where it’s going to lead me.”
Besides her Parisian nightmare, Sabalenka has enjoyed a strong 2026 season so far with three titles to her name. After winning a WTA 500 in Brisbane, she then won two WTA 1000s in Indian Wells and Miami. She was also runner-up to Elena Rybakina at the Australian Open.
“I feel like that’s the key to staying at the top: always searching for something, for that little one percent that’s going to bring a lot of good things and is going to make a great impact,” Sabalenka explained.
“I’m always searching. I know that I don’t have to change a lot. I know my strengths; I know my weaknesses. I try to stay pretty clear about the whole image, the whole picture, of what’s happening.
“But I also want to understand myself a bit more, so I decided to dig a bit deeper.
“I feel like it’s always a searching process, and as long as you’re open for something new, it’s definitely going to lead you somewhere.”
Sabalenka, who has 24 WTA titles to her name, is seeking her first trophy on grass in Berlin. Granted a bye in the first round, her opening match will be against world No. 19 Ekaterina Alexandrova.
