Sabalenka sizzles and opens up on mental challenges she had also faced in light of Zverev’s travails at Wimbledon

Call it restoring order amidst chaos, numero uno Aryna Sabalenka steamrolling her way through to the third round in ladies singles at Wimbledon has come as a huge relief. The first three days at The Championships have seen upsets galore, what with Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, Jasimine Paolini and Qinwen Zheng falling by the wayside.

Indeed, Aryna Sabalenka is one of the fittest and strongest players who has been in a good space of mind. Her 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 fluent win over Marie Bouzkova on Centre Court, easily the most beautiful tennis venue in the world, showed that the queen of tennis is ready to play her best tennis. These days, even the once-conservative Wimbledon is on an enormous social media drive, where every nugget of information is out there for the fans. Of course, for the tennis media as well, getting lowdown on stats and quotes is easy. The way to sift through the maze of info is see what the players are thinking about.

It is good to note, as much as Sabalenka was happy win her match in the third round in a quick burst, she made a fervent plea the massive upsets do not continue to rock the ladies’ singles draw at Wimbledon. The first week is a hard one and this time, too, there have been many upsets. Of course, one more win, and a famous one, was Emma Raducanu also easing through.

For those who see tennis as a mental sport and the challenges it brings for the players, whether winning or losing, almost all the famous names have spoken up after German Alexander Zvereve lost in the first round. He offered no excuses but spoke on the mental battles he has been facing.

It has not happened overnight and his talk with the media is clear, he is uncertain and unclear what is going on. This is a serious topic for those who follow wins and losses of players. A few years back, when Naomi Osaka, of fame and fortune before the Tokyo Olympic, was ruling the roost, she was fine. Once she spoke up on wanting to skip media interviews before the French Open, as they ask banal questions, Osaka was under attack. The concerned folks said Osaka had her right to privacy, even though she knew the WTA and the ATP makes it mandatory for players to address the media.

Back to Zverev losing and talking on his challenges, more in the mind and heart, there has been an outputting of love and support. It is a good sign. The reactions from the other players, men as well as on the distaff side is positive. It brings into focus how players are ready to rally around each other, even if they be opponents on court.

“Tennis is a very difficult sport to handle mentally because you’re losing almost every week. It’s really difficult to take your joy from the results because it’s so up and down,” said Raducanu, sitting in the same media room on Wednesday at Wimbledon where Zverevev had spoken on his feelings. He had spoken on no motivation, a lack of joy in his life and feeling empty. Raducanu was emphatic and open when she spoke in support of Zverev. “I think tennis is a really difficult sport, you lose every week pretty much,” she added.

There was support from Aryna Sabalenka as well for Zverev and others who battle the inner demons and feel almost lost in the tennis world. Sabalenka spoke on how she has a solid team with her and she can talk anything and everything with them to stay focussed. These days, she has also been taking tips from Novak Djokokovic, a true legend, who lends a helping hand to anyone in need. “I had therapists for like five years. I stopped working maybe in 2022. It’s actually crazy to hear from someone like Alexander because he surrounded himself with the family. I think it’s really important to talk openly about whatever you dealing with,” said Sabalenka on Wednesday evening. And she was emphatic when she said if a player is going to keep things bottled up, it can destroy.

One man who gives an impression of being happy as he wins more is Carlos Alcaraz. The defending champion, too, spoke on how important is it for him to enjoy his matches, Pressure of expectation, a pet phrase, is not something which weighs down Alcaraz. At the same time, he also did refer to the struggles of Zverev. It’s good, tennis folks are not inert to problems which are faced by someone as good as Zverev. One never knows who gets hit, next, when it comes to a string of losses and not knowing what to do.