“I was just trying to put as much pressure on her as I can so she would go even crazier on her serve,” Aryna Sabalenka said earlier this year, in October, commenting on rival Coco Gauff after defeating her in the Wuhan Open semifinal. Well, it seems the tables have turned now. While Gauff appears to have found some solution for her problematic serve, as seen in her winning campaign at the WTA Finals last month, the Belarusian, ironically, is now concerned about the weaknesses in her own game, as her latest revelation suggests.

The three-time Grand Slam champion believes there are areas for improvement in her playing style. Yes, she’s the top-ranked player on the WTA list, but she is still not perfect, by her own admission. The fact that she’s acknowledging it herself is a testament to her passion for the sport. Speaking to BBC Sport in an interview, dated December 25, she didn’t hide away from talking about her weaknesses. “There is so many things to improve,” she said. “I’m not that good with maybe my game at the net in singles. There is a lot of things to improve in my touch game.” she added. While revealing that not everything is great with her technique, she confessed, “Even my serve is not as good as I want it to be, so there is always [elements] to improve.”

Sabalenka has come a long way from the initial days of her career when she wasn’t able to adjust her on-court movement according to her body weight. She worked on that issue for a long time with her trainer and her team. Eventually, she got it fixed, and as a result, a new version of the Belarusian was seen last season and how.

She went on to win two Major titles in 2024. Back in January, she clinched the Australian Open after defeating Qinwen Zheng 6-3, 6-2. Then in September, she won the US Open at the Flushing Meadows with a scoreline of 7-5, 7-5 against Jessica Pegula. Her overall singles record of 56-14 clearly indicates her domination in the season gone by.

Now with the next season around the corner, there’s a major record Aryna Sabalenka would like to recreate. When she steps on the court in Australia in January, she will look to equalize a 26-year-old record.

Aryna Sabalenka inching closer to a 26-year-old record by Martina Hingis

For the unversed, Sabalenka has won the Australian Open for two consecutive years. She first lifted the Major trophy Down Under in January 2023. Trailing against the Kazakh star Elena Rybakina in the first set, she came back strongly and took the match with a scoreline of 4-6 6-3 6-4. Then in 2024, she outperformed China’s Qinwen Zheng in straight sets. Now, she’s on the brink of winning her third successive Australian Open. This record was last made in 1999 by former WTA icon Martina Hingis.

The Swiss legend won the Major Down Under for three consecutive years, from 1997 to 1999. In the past 26 years, however, no other female tennis player has been able to repeat this accomplishment. It will be intriguing to see whether Sabalenka will become the first WTA player in almost three decades to match Hingis.

Before her Australian Open campaign, however, the Belarusian will try to get in proper rhythm at the Brisbane International. The year-end event will serve as a great opportunity for the World No.1 to improve on her weak areas and gain much-needed confidence. In her last appearance at this tournament, she failed to lift the trophy in the final. Elena Rybakina shattered her hopes after clinching the match with a comfortable scoreline of 6-0 6-3. Do you think Sabalenka will go into the Australian Open with a title win at the Brisbane International this time? Let us know in the comments below.