The French Open is underway, and Aryna Sabalenka is en route to winning her fifth Grand Slam and first Roland Garros trophy. On Saturday, she triumphed over Daria Kasatkina (6-0, 7-5) to book her spot in the fourth round. However, before that, Sabalenka’s coach revealed the change the reigning World No. 1 WTA star adopted to perform consistently at Grand Slams.

“When we actually started working with her as a coach and a player, it was her first target. She said, ‘I want to play better on the slams.’ So we tried to dig deeper. So I think she’s opened up a lot about it,” said Anton Dubrov in an interview with Patrick McEnroe. “And it’s helped guide her through the first rounds, when she was the most nervous. So right now she’s more aware about her body, about her game, what she’s able to do without overrushing or overplaying the opponent. And when she doesn’t have to do it with lots of unforced errors.”

“So I think right now she’s more aware about herself and also how she can adapt better because before it was like okay, this is the only thing I can do on the court, and I think we develop more tools where she can have like okay, if this one isn’t going to work today. I can play some defense. I can go to the net, I can play a little bit more with the spin, and I think it helps a lot to calm her down.”

Dubrov didn’t jump into explaining Sabalenka‘s consistency randomly. It was tennis legend Patrick McEnroe who quipped that the Belarusian hasn’t lost before the quarterfinals in a major in four years. Well, that is true and quite an astonishing fact. Sabalenka was last eliminated by Camila Giorgi (4-6, 6-1, 6-0) in the third round of the 2022 French Open.

But from the 2022 US Open, Sabalenka started an era-defining run of consistency. She reached the quarterfinals or better in every single Grand Slam tournament she actually played over the next several seasons. The only tournament missing from her record was Wimbledon 2024, which she had to skip entirely because of a shoulder injury. Considering that a withdrawal does not count as a match loss, Sabalenka’s streak remained perfectly intact.

As things stand, Sabalenka has four Grand Slams under her belt. She won the Australian Open (2023, 2024) and the US Open (2024, 2025) twice. In this journey, Dubrov arguably played one of the crucial roles. He joined Sabalenka’s coaching room as the tactical man behind her preparations. Over the years, their bond grew stronger as Dubrov picked out multiple ways to keep Sabalenka’s mental attitude in check during important matches.

For instance, in the 2025 WTA Finals, when Sabalenka faced Jessica Pegula, it sparked drama. Sabalenka was trailing 2-1 in the third set. And under immense stress and struggling with her game, she turned toward her player’s box and vented directly at Dubrov. However, Dubrov, rather than sitting through the tirade, walked out of the stadium.

The Belarusian WTA star was left to fend for herself, and she did just that, winning the match 6-4, 2-6, 6-3. Later, in the post-match press conference, Sabalenka reflected on Dubrov’s move and commended it.

“Honestly, I think it was the right move from him to just let me be on my own. And I don’t want to say the way I wanted to say. But he really upset me, and I was really, really stressed and angry on him. And that really helped me to pull out such tennis,” said Sabalenka.

So, Dubrov’s strategic coaching and tactical preparations have helped Sabalenka maintain an impressive, consistent record in recent years. Could she carry the momentum forward and clinch her first French Open title? Only time will tell.

Aryna Sabalenka previews Naomi Osaka’s French Open matchup

The standout Clay court player has four Grand Slams in her career, all on the hard surface, yet she showed great resilience at the 2026 French Open. After beating Iva Jovic 7-6, 6-7, 6-4 on Saturday, Osaka reached her career-first French Open round of 16.

Reigning World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka will stand across the court against Osaka in her next match. The veteran WTA stars have already clashed twice this year—at Indian Wells and Madrid—and Sabalenka defeated the Japanese on both occasions. Considering that, the Belarusian appeared confident while previewing the pre-quarterfinals matchup against Osaka.

“I feel like the last one in Madrid was a really tight match,” said Sabalenka at the post-match press conference on Saturday. “It was a great level. She really stepped in and raised her level in the last match, and I’m just ready for the fight, you know. I’m ready to go there to fight for that match for that win, and ready to do anything it takes to get the win.”

At the 2026 Madrid Open (Clay court), Osaka put Sabalenka in a tough spot after securing the opening set 7-6. However, the World No. 1 rose back up to win the remaining sets 6-3 and 6-2. Considering Osaka’s resurgence on clay courts, will she produce yet another challenge for Sabalenka? It will be interesting to see on Monday.