Aryna Sabalenka has never been the calm person she is now. Anyone who’s followed her career has seen the fire:  the screams, the racket smashes, hurtful words,  the tears after tough losses. Yet behind that storm stands a surprising influence: her friend Novak Djokovic – a man who’s made a career out of keeping his cool. It almost feels like fire meeting water. But Djokovic, too, wasn’t always zen. He learned it with time. And now Sabalenka is learning it too. Recently, she revealed a Djokovic secret that changed how she sees herself and her game.

Last month, Sabalenka had the chance to train with Novak Djokovic in Greece, where he now permanently resides. Fresh off her 2025 US Open victory, she took a short training-holiday in Athens, skipping the China Open to rest and reset. There, she and Djokovic “practised a couple of times” during her stay. The two even went on what Sabalenka jokingly called a “dream double date” in Athens with Djokovic’s wife Jelena, and her boyfriend.  In her recent interview with The National News, Sabalenka opened up about the advice from Djokovic that stayed with her the most.

“How to stay settled and how to look at everything as you’re looking from the outside on the situation on the court, off the court. Just to, like, be able to sit back and look at everything,” Aryna Sabalenka explained. “Kind of like it’s not you looking, it’s someone else looking at your situation. I think that’s the best lesson that you could take from Novak.”

Djokovic’s calm isn’t some mystery; it’s awareness. In his early years, Novak Djokovic wore every emotion on his face: frustration, anger, disbelief. There were moments when he smashed racquets, yelled at his player box, and even turned his frustration toward the crowd. Commentators often called him out for being too emotional or questioned his toughness when he withdrew mid-match.

One of his toughest lessons came at the 2020 US Open. Trailing Pablo Carreno Busta late in the first set, Djokovic struck a ball in frustration,  not out of malice, but out of impulse, and it accidentally hit a line judge in the throat. The shock on his face said it all. Minutes later, he was defaulted from the tournament. It was one of the lowest points of his career. Djokovic, however, didn’t hide in the aftermath. He apologized and said, “Turn all this into a lesson for my growth and evolution as a player and human being.”  However, Aryna Sabalenka is confronted with a comparable challenge years later.

Aryna Sabalenka’s battle with her emotions

Aryna Sabalenka’s emotions nearly overflowed during the 2025 Wuhan Open semifinal. She threw her racket in frustration after missing a shot, and it just missed a ball kid. Although she wasn’t eliminated, the incident was labeled as “dangerous behavior” and swiftly received backlash on the internet. However, Sabalenka has never hidden from that truth.

In several interviews, she’s admitted that her emotions have cost her matches she could have won. Reflecting on a rough stretch earlier in the season, she said, “It was really emotional and really stressful… I would say that a better decision would have been to step back, reset and recharge.” It was a rare moment of self-awareness from someone who used to let fire lead the way. But things are changing.

After her Wimbledon 2025 semifinal loss, Sabalenka spoke with honesty about her struggle to control her reactions. “We all can lose control over our emotions. It’s absolutely normal. Every time when I was really that close … to completely lose it … yelling, screaming, smashing rackets, I keep reminding myself that’s not an option,” she said. But change doesn’t happen overnight. And that’s where Novak Djokovic continues to play a quiet but important role.

Aryna Sabalenka disclosed that she had a direct conversation with Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon, asking him, “What was the focus and what was his mindset going into the match?” Additionally, she recalled that “we talked for an hour … and then later on … I remembered what he said … I think it helped me,” she said, referring to her subsequent US Open victory. She smiled and remarked, “He’s a great guy. You can ask him anything and he can give you advice.” She went on to say that working out with him “helps mentally too,” in addition to pushing her physically. It appears that Djokovic’s counsel has given Sabalenka something she has long sought: the ability to stop, take a deep breath, and decide to exert control over chaos.