Aryna Sabalenka's coach pulls back curtain on Grand Slam struggles ahead of US Open
Aryna Sabalenka's coach pulls back curtain on Grand Slam struggles ahead of US Open
Matthew NeschisSat, August 22, 2026 at 7:00 AM UTC
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Aryna Sabalenka has struggled to get over the hump at Grand Slams this season -Credit:Getty Images
Aryna Sabalenka’s fitness coach shed light on what has contributed to the 28-year-old’s struggles at Grand Slams this season.
Sabalenka got off to a roaring start during the first three months of 2026, securing three titles from four main draws, including the “Sunshine Double” at Indian Wells and Miami. She came agonizingly close to winning the Australian Open as well, ultimately falling to Elena Rybakina in the final despite taking the second set and holding a 3-0 lead in the decider.
Yet Sabalenka has struggled to achieve similar success since, at times letting her emotions get the best of her. In June, she appeared to have a clear shot at her first French Open title, but was bounced in the quarterfinals upon dropping 10 straight games to Diana Shnaider.
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One month later, Sabalenka fell to Naomi Osaka in the Round of 16 at Wimbledon, marking her first straight-set defeat at a major in nearly six years.
Immediately following the pair of gut-wrenching defeats, Sabalenka did little to hide her frustration. At Roland Garros, the Belarusian phenom threatened to “quit tennis.” Then at SW19, she admitted: “I just want to go get completely drunk.”
According to Jason Stacy — who’s served as Sabalenka’s mental and physical performance coach for the better part of seven years — the world No. 1’s burning passion can be not only her biggest strength, but also her greatest weakness.
“The things that led to the losses are the same things that led to the biggest wins,” Stacy told Mirror U.S. Sports. “It's that deep fire in her, along with a bit of fear. Because we all need a little bit of that sometimes.
Jason Stacy argued that Aryna Sabalenka's passion is the root cause of her wins and losses -Credit:Getty Images
“And sometimes that fire inside of her, that fight, that clarity and that strength that she has … decides to take the driver's seat. And if you're not paying attention, it'll say, ‘Let's go.’ And it just starts. It'll hit the gas, and it's gone before you realize it. Sometimes it's really hard to pull yourself back in, even though you practice and you learn all the ways to catch yourself early.”
Against Shnaider at Roland Garros, Sabalenka failed to catch herself early, becoming a ball of emotions that eventually snowballed into a massive avalanche.
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As her opponent gained momentum and the French crowd turned against her, Sabalenka screamed out towards her box and into the air. After a costly mistake, she slammed a ball into the clay, her frustration evident in her body language.
The ugly display, while difficult to relive, ultimately served as a lesson for both Sabalenka and Stacy. “The French Open, all it really did for me personally — and eventually Arena — is just help highlight the fact that there's still work to do,” Stacy explained. “After these matches, she comes back with better questions, and is even thinking of solutions that make more sense, where before it was just emotion and craziness.”
Aryna Sabalenka did little to hide her frustration during the French Open -Credit:Getty Images
Though Sabalenka fell short once again at Wimbledon, Stacy saw a new and improved mindset in the four-time Grand Slam singles champion. “The way she lost in the French Open had nothing to do with what happened in Wimbledon,” he argued.
“She was definitely trying to maintain her composure. She was doing her breathing, she was trying to ground herself in between points every chance she could.
"But she didn't really have the answer — the technical or tactical answer in that moment. And it was [head coach] Anton [Dubrov] and myself who … didn't set it up. We got too comfortable, we assumed too much, and then we allowed our player to go out there unprepared.
“We played her three other times this year, and no disrespect on Naomi, but it wasn't like, ‘Oh, this is going to be a tough, scary match. We'd better be really ready for the old school Naomi to come back or some crazy match.’ And that's what happened. Naomi played a ridiculously amazing match.”
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While Sabalenka has failed to live up to the monumental expectations placed on her shoulders at this year’s Grand Slams, all will be forgotten if she defends her title at the U.S. Open. A third-straight victory in New York would place her in rare territory, with Serena Williams and Chris Evert the only two other women to accomplish the feat in the modern era.
That kind of pressure, Stacy acknowledged, is the unavoidable cost Sabalenka must pay after reaching the pinnacle of tennis. “You've gotten way better, you've improved, your level is getting better and better and better,” Stacy said.
“But you're still going to have moments where you crack. And unfortunately — or fortunately — for us, when we have those moments, the entire world gets to see them.”
Source: “AOL Sports”
