Aryna Sabalenka stood frozen, her emotions pouring out as she buried her face in her hands. Holding the microphone, she struggled to find words. When she finally did, the tears came. Just hours earlier, the world No. 1 had looked firmly in control after taking the first set in the French Open final. But the script flipped. Her explosive power game, so often her winning weapon, was slowly dismantled by Coco Gauff, who roared back to win her first Roland Garros title with a 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-4 victory. Now, the Belarusian is reflecting on her game.

It was a match worthy of the grand occasion. Coco Gauff, seeded second, had lost a dramatic first-set tiebreak in Paris, echoing the heartbreak of her previous final loss to Aryna Sabalenka in Madrid. But the 21-year-old American was not backing down this time. She reset, regrouped, and ran away with the second set before holding her nerve in a tense decider to clinch her second Grand Slam crown.

Reflecting on the loss in the press conference, the world No. 1 opened up about how surreal it all felt on the court. “Today was just… yeah… sometimes it felt like she was hitting the ball with the frame and it magically landed in. You’re on the back foot the whole time,” she said. “It honestly felt like a joke. Like someone up there was laughing and saying, ‘Let’s see how you handle this.’ I couldn’t today. I really hope next time, if the conditions are the same, I play a bit smarter. Not rush. Just stay in it and fight.”

Conditions certainly played their part. Unlike her semifinal against Iga Świątek, which was played indoors under the roof, the final was subject to the elements, and the swirling Parisian wind proved to be an unwelcome guest. While both players struggled to adjust, it was Sabalenka who looked more visibly unsettled. She paused often before serving, waiting for the gusts to pass. Her timing was off, her footwork shaky, and frustration built with every miscue. Gauff, meanwhile, absorbed it all—weather, pressure, and opponent—and kept her focus razor-sharp.

Aryna Sabalenka’s struggles were summed up in one brutal stat: 70 unforced errors. The last game told the story. She saved one match point with a scorching winner that kissed the baseline but, moments later, fired a backhand long to hand Gauff the championship.

Despite losing the final, Sabalenka will maintain her No. 1 ranking and look to regroup at Wimbledon.

Can Aryna Sabalenka aim for a title at Wimbledon?

Winning 12 matches across the year’s first two Grand Slams and still coming up empty-handed must sting for Aryna Sabalenka. But the good news? She won’t have to wait long to try again.

Wimbledon is just around the corner, set to begin in a little over three weeks. And with it comes another shot at Grand Slam glory and potentially her fourth major title. The 27-year-old has been knocking on the door at the All England Club. She reached the semi-finals in her last two appearances at the All England Club, only to fall just short. In 2023, she held a one-set lead against Ons Jabeur in the semis before the Tunisian mounted a comeback. A shoulder injury kept Sabalenka out of the tournament in 2024, but this year she’s determined to go one step further.

And the stars might just align. Wimbledon has been one of the most open fields in recent memory; no woman has successfully defended the title or won it more than once since Serena Williams in 2016. The current champion, Barbora Krejcikova, will have her work cut out for a repeat. Aryna Sabalenka, meanwhile, has a golden chance to break through and finally claim a Slam outside the hard courts. Could Wimbledon 2025 be her moment? What do you think?