Sabalenka's glory in New York shows lessons learned

World No 1 has proved she can control her emotions to be one of the most consistent major tournament players

- Tumaini Carayol

Aryna Sabalenka thought she had everything figured out. She believed she had done all the work necessary, harnessing successfully her once uncontrollable power into consistent excellence. After overcoming so many hurdles en route to becoming the best player in the world, she felt ready for anything. Sabalenka was convinced she could handle any challenge that came her way.

It was not until her excruciating French Open final defeat against Coco Gauff that Sabalenka understood this was not true. As she struggled with her nerves under such significant pressure and punishing windy conditions, the 27-year-old was outplayed by a tireless, gutsier opponent in Gauff who broke her down by forcing her to work hard for every single point. In the days after that defeat, as the discourse continued over her subsequent unsporting remarks during her press conference, Sabalenka travelled to Mykonos, Greece with her boyfriend, Georgios. She used the brief break to drink tequila, disconnect from tennis and let off steam, but Sabalenka dedicated much of her time to pondering her next steps.