In a late-night nail-biter, Aryna Sabalenka narrowly escaped Elina Svitolina in Rome, keeping fans on the edge of their seats until the very end. However, amid the excitement of match points, there were fears about a sore back for the Belarusian, particularly with the French Open approaching. Despite beginning the 2024 season with a triumph at the Australian Open, the world’s number two tennis player has some concerns to take care of.

In the midst of the competition, Sabalenka seemed to be experiencing a flaming back that made her serve slower. Identifying the pain, she asked chair umpire Jenny Zhang to contact the physical therapist. Looking at her condition, a 3-minute medical timeout was given before the third set, as a few came on the court, to help Sabalenka with her back pain.

The Belarusian struggled physically, but Svitolina missed three break points and was unable to take advantage of the situation. Even though Sabalenka was under pressure right from the start and her back ailment flared up during the match, she was still able to handle Svitolina’s game.

However, the Australian Open champion’s chances of winning a Grand Slam are clouded by this injury scare, which also casts doubt on her performance in the forthcoming French Open. Although she has maintained a certain level of competition this year by progressing to the later stages of various tournaments without suffering any serious injuries, this medical break has now caused her participation to be called into question.

The two-time Grand Slam champion struggled with injuries during the 2023 Miami Open when she played Shelby Rogers in the second round. Due to a leg ailment, she needed medical support to get through the two sets of play. But she successfully overcame it and showed resiliency and persistence in the face of the setback, ultimately triumphing.

Moreover, the Belarusian tennis player carries crazy motivation for this year’s French Open. Nearly a month ago, ahead of the clay-court beginning, she talked about getting ready for the big clay event in her own way.

Aryna Sabalenka’s amazing French Open motivation

The Australian Open champion is carrying additional drive for the 2024 French Open after her sad 2023 Roland Garros exit. Sabalenka faced Karolina Muchova in the Grand Slam competition semifinals, but she lost by a close margin.

She said, “I’m still probably hurting. But it’s okay. I always say we’re not losing, we are learning. I think that experience was really important for me to learn a lot of stuff. Hopefully this year I can do a little bit better.” Acknowledging that the defeat still stings even after a year, she has openly admitted that the match against Muchova taught her a valuable lesson.

The injury scare Sabalenka suffered during the Italian Open is definitely something to be concerned about as she prepares to exact revenge for her defeat from last year.