Aryna Sabalenka feeling 'more fresh and more ready to go' after 'very important' break as she returns at Citi Open
Published 30/07/2024 at 22:28 GMT+1
World No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka will make her return to the court this week. Sabalenka is not in action at the Paris Olympics, but will instead be playing at the Citi Open in Washington DC. She says it was "very important" for her to take a break and she feels "more fresh" mentally and "ready to go". She also said she needs to build her "confidence and level" before the US Open next month.
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Aryna Sabalenka says it was “very important” for her to take a break from tennis and her aim as she returns at the Citi Open in Washington DC is to become a “better player”.
World No. 3 Sabalenka was the highest-ranked player who opted to skip the Paris 2024 Olympics, doing so to prioritise her health.
Sabalenka hasn’t played since June 22, when she retired from her quarter-final match in Berlin with a shoulder injury.
As the likes of Iga Swiatek challenge for medals on clay in Paris, Sabalenka will start her hard-court summer on Wednesday with her first match in 39 days.
“I think at the end it was very important for me to take a little break,” she said.
“I had really tough, tough struggles starting from March. It didn’t stop. Probably it was much needed.
“Like mentally, I feel more fresh and more ready to go. I don't want to compare myself to the players in Paris because I don't want to think that they going to be not ready.
"They going to be ready. That's why they're top players. I'm just talking for myself. I feel it was really much needed, and I'll be ready.”
Sabalenka will open against qualifier Kamilla Rakhimova on Wednesday.
Reflecting on her month-plus away from the WTA Tour, she said: “I decided to take care of my health, to do a proper rehab, get back stronger.
“For two weeks I was doing rehab, like a lot of exercises, a lot of treatments, a lot of recovery stuff. It felt like a lot, like the whole day I’ve been doing, like, exercises. It feel like it’s actually time to switch off, but you’re still working out, still doing something.
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“Then I start practicing, like slowly getting back. So far I’m doing well.”
Sabalenka has not won a title since triumphing at the Australian Open at the start of the season.
She will be looking to return to her top form over the next month in the lead up to the US Open, which starts on August 26.
“The goal is just to become a better player,” she said. “After each tough loss, learn something and improve it. Hopefully this injury will never bother me again.
“I haven’t played for a while. I felt like I need to build my confidence back and build my level back before going to the US Open. So I need to play some matches, and that’s why I’m here.”
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