r/WTANews

The WTA rankings leader not only posed in front of the lens but also gave an interview. Below are a few quotes. On her beginnings and choosing tennis: “In our region, the two most popular sports are ice hockey and tennis. My dad chose tennis.” On financial struggles in childhood: “Until I was maybe 13, we were well-off. And then my dad started having problems. So many setbacks. I watched him struggle repeatedly with difficulties in his career, but he always got back up. My parents tried so hard to make everything somehow work, and we didn’t really talk about it. But I knew. Parents think we don’t know, but we do.” On pressure, her father’s support, and a crisis at age 9: “Tennis was fun, and I think it’s really important for coaches to make sure it stays that way. He always told me: ‘If you don’t like it, if you want to quit, just tell us. You don’t have to force yourself into anything.’ There was a period when I was probably nine that I was close to giving up. But I saw how proud Dad was of me, and I didn’t want to let him down. And then I fell in love with the sport again, even more than before.” On the opinions of her first coaches: “Many coaches told me I was stupid and the only thing I could do was hit the ball with too much force. They said I’d never break into the top hundred.” On the support of Aleksandr Shakutin: “He was the one who truly believed in me. There were other people who believed in me, but he was the one who helped me.” On the influence of her personality on her game: “I was a typical Taurus. When I see a goal, I have to achieve it, and there’s no other way. It’s part of my personality that can drive me crazy, but it can also put me into true fight mode and help me play with passion. It’s two sides of the same coin.” On lacking control over her emotions in the past: “I was extremely emotional all the time. I had, let’s say, zero control over it. I could be leading a match, and then I’d fly into a rage and lose everything. I knew I had a problem.” On not shaking hands: “I respect that stance. I know it’s nothing personal. They’re sending a signal that way. But it was tough, the amount of hate I experienced from people during tournaments. One of the coaches flew into a rage and told me it was me dropping the bombs. Of course I want peace for everyone. I don’t want this war to be happening. They should sit down at the table and sort out this mess through negotiations. But I also believe that sports is a platform and a place where we can unite, not fight each other like we’re waging our own war. Let’s come together, be as one, show peace. For so long, Ukrainians and Belarusians were like brothers and sisters. We’re the same. We’re all closely connected. And now there’s this huge wall between us, and I don’t know if it’ll ever come down.” On her father’s death (in 2019, when Sabalenka was 21, her father died suddenly from meningitis. The ambulance wouldn’t take him to the hospital and just lowered his fever with medication—note): “I thought I’d carry him to the hospital myself if the ambulance wouldn’t take him. They only took him on the third day, and it was already too late. It was even harder for my mom. And it was only later that I realized how much my sister was suffering. We were both Daddy’s little girls.”

Coco: “Just trying to stay there mentally again. I had a big lead in the third set and it got a little bit close. But she’s a great player. She’s capable of winning games. I learned a little bit on how to try to close those out. I’m glad I was able to win. I don’t know how many match points it was”.

“First I want to congratulate Elina. Another tough battle between us. I’m on the other side but hopefully one of these days I can get over that. You had an incredible tournament. A lot of long matches against great players. Congratulations to you and your team. Always very nice on and off the court. Hopefully see you at French Open in the final.”

ELINA IS A 3-TIME ROME CHAMPION.

8 years after she won it back-to back in 2017 & 2018… what a story.

5th WTA 1000 title of her career.

She’s beaten Coco in all 3 of their meetings this year & now leads the head to head 4-2.

Her effort this week was nothing short of extraordinary.

She had to beat the world #2 Elena Rybakina and world #3 Iga Swiatek back-to-back in less than 24 hours, & then beat the world #4 in the final.

One of the toughest paths to a WTA 1000 title you’ll ever see.

✅20th WTA title
✅3rd Rome title
✅7th top 10 win of 2026
✅50th career top 10 win
✅8-0 in clay court finals

When she came back as a mom in 2023, she was unranked.

Now, she’s back to world #7, top 3 in the race, & a WTA 1000 champion once again.

Greatness isn't only about staying at the top… sometimes it's about fighting your way back there.