“You Need a Reset”- Aryna Sabalenka Urged to Step Away From Tennis After Struggling With Her Form

Reaching five finals, winning three titles, and having a 47-11 win-loss record that includes two Grand Slam runner-up finishes- that’s a season that looks good on almost any player’s resume. For Aryna Sabalenka, however, that has not been the case, as the Belarusian’s form has been under scrutiny throughout the season, given the nature of her losses and the unexpected opponents she has lost to. Former ATP Pro Greg Rusedski had his say on the matter, suggesting what Sabalenka could do off the court rather than on it to revive her form.

“Well, sometimes you need a reset and a little bit of time away from the game,” said Rusedski on the ‘Off Court with Greg Rusedski’podcast. “So I think for her it’ll be interesting to see how the top eight in the world and how she performs there. And then get away, get a break. Don’t even start up until possibly the Australian Open like Novak Djokovic does or a lot of the big names. They take an extended period away from the game so when they’re ready to go, their preparation is perfect and they’re ready to hit the road for the rest of the season. So sometimes putting in a little bit more breaks if you can and getting away from the game is not a negative thing, but sometimes a very positive thing to do.”

Sabalenka’s last loss to Ann Li in Wuhan saw the Belarusian fade after winning the first set and holding a decisive lead in the second. She staged a tremendous fightback after being 1-4 down in the final set, saving as many as nine match points, but eventually lost to her American opponent in the third-set tiebreak.

The Ann Li loss in Wuhan has been in line with some of Sabalenka’s other losses this season, especially the one against Diana Shnaider at the French Open, where the Belarusian could not close out the match despite being one game away from victory. Not to mention that the World No. 2 was sporting a black tape on her knee during her Wuhan match, and she did take a medical timeout in the final set.

Rusedski’s advice to take a break might be what helps Sabalenka get back to her all-conquering form of the last two seasons. The longest break that the four-time Major champion had this season was a little over a month, when she decided to skip the Middle East swing, which saw her not play the mandatory events in Qatar and Dubai. While her decision courted serious backlash from the tournament director in Dubai, the payoff was big for Sabalenka, who was refreshed after the break, and won the titles at Indian Wells and Miami.

Should Sabalenka heed Rusedski’s advice, the Belarusian will get a break of more than two months given that the Australian Open starts on January 17 next year, and the WTA Finals will end on November 15. However, Sabalenka has played the Brisbane warm-up event for the last three seasons, winning the title in the last two editions. An early title in the season is good for confidence, especially since World No. 1 Elena Rybakina was just confirmed at the event, giving Sabalenka a potential opportunity to test out her closest rival early in the season.

Throughout this season, Sabalenka’s on-court frustrations have been caught on camera, whether it’s a moment of frustration toward a ball kid during her match against Sara Bejlek in Cincinnati, or a warning for ball abuse very early in her US Open final against Rybakina. The former World No. 1 still has one more stop to make in 2026, and the Belarusian will be keen to end her season strong.

Even though she has lost to lower-ranked opponents this year, Sabalenka will be keen to play with the top players in the world at the WTA Finals. Ending strong at the event will be crucial for the Belarusian, for whom last year’s event was a turning point, as she lost the final to Rybakina, who used her form to start strong this year, beating Sabalenka in the Australian Open final.

Not to mention, Indian Wells will be the venue for the WTA Finals this year, somewhere Sabalenka has had good memories recently, having won the WTA 1000 title there this year. What’s more, the Belarusian beat Rybakina in the Indian Wells final this year, saving match points to win the title.

While getting back the No.1 ranking from Rybakina by the end of this year will be almost impossible for Sabalenka, a good showing at the WTA Finals will give her much-needed confidence for the Australian Open, where the Belarusian will have more of a chance of replacing Rybakina at the top position, as the Kazakh is the defending champion.

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