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Aryna Sabalenka, 25, has already had a dream come true at this year’s US Open: When first-seeded Iga Swiatek lost to Jelena Ostapenko on Sunday, Sabalenka, of Belarus, became the new number one player in the world—but she’s not done yet. Today at noon, she plays 20-year-old Qinwen Zheng, who’s been riding her own wave in the tournament, most recently upsetting fifth seed Ons Jabeur, with the winner going on to the semifinals. Still, for Sabalenka—the reigning Australian Open champion, who plays take-no-prisoners, heart-on-your-sleeve tennis, with all the accompanying glory or heartbreak—even that won’t be enough: She wants to win this thing. We sat down with her for a rare mid-tournament chat before her quarterfinal match.
Vogue: We’re at this tricky time in the Open now, the midpoint. Do you approach the second week of a major differently than the first week? Is it a different mental thing?
Aryna Sabalenka: I wouldn’t say that it’s a different mental thing, but definitely when you’re going into the second week, you’re fired up—it’s like you’re counting down, and you’re trying to bring your best tennis and just fight for it.
And how does becoming the number one player in the world midway through the tournament change any of that? Obviously, that’s a wonderful thing—but does it create more complications? Would it have been better for you if you would’ve learned about this in a week, when the tournament’s over?
Honestly, I’m super excited to be world number one, but it’s not changing anything. It’s not like things will be easier for me right now—probably, yes, it would be better for me to learn this next week, not in the middle of the tournament [laughing]—but yeah, it is how it is. Of course I’m super excited and super happy to achieve this goal.
What happens when you suddenly become the number one player in the world—do you get a bunch of shout-outs from fellow players, that kind of thing?
Yeah—Novak messaged me saying, “Smile if you’re going to be world number one soon,” and sent this funny picture of the two of us. A lot of players messaged me—a lot of people.
Did you have that kind of moment when you were a kid hitting a tennis ball against a wall, or just starting out, when you first had the dream of, you know, One day, I’ll be world number one? Was that a thing?
Not at all. I really only started thinking I might become a professional when I was 15 or 16, when I started playing small tournaments. But when I was a kid, I just really liked to compete—I liked to be the best in the practice. I don’t know—I guess it’s just the way I was made.
When your father passed away about three years ago, you said that he told you that you could be number one, and that you were dedicating yourself to that goal—
I just saw how proud he was of me—how he was celebrating every win, every title—and he told me then that I have everything I needed to achieve this goal: I just had to learn myself better, to learn how to control my emotions, and one day I’d be world number one. It was like our dream.
You said something very interesting after your last match. You were talking about stroke mechanics, changing your serve, that kind of thing, and then someone asked you if you were working on anything else, maybe something that wasn’t strictly about shotmaking. And you said: “Yeah—not letting your feelings destroy you." You have a high-risk, high-reward kind of game—you go for it, in short—and when it doesn’t work, we can often see your feelings working on you.
Yeah.
Is that a way you choose to play, or is that just how you play?
It’s just how I play.
Is it hard to handle?
No—I’ve been really aggressive on court since a very young age. And sometimes when you’re not feeling your best, someone from outside could watch your match thinking, like, Oh, my gosh—she’s crushing it, she’s playing amazing, but you’re feeling like, No—the ball is not going the right direction. When you’re just not feeling your best, this thing can just destroy you inside, and you’ll start going crazy, missing a lot for no reason. So it’s really important just to do your job and not care about the feelings—to learn how to play your best when you’re not feeling your best. If the ball is going in, it’s okay for today.
Do you work with a sports psychologist?
I used to, but then I realized that nobody knows me better than me, and nobody other than me can help me.
What do you do with all of your downtime when you’re at a major, particularly now that we’re here in New York? Do you have time to enjoy the city?
Yes—it’s a lot of people, it’s craziness, but I really like to walk around and just feel the atmosphere of New York. For me, the best kind of recharge is going for a good dinner.
Do you have favorites?
I really love Fouquet’s—it’s amazing—and The Polo Bar. I went there last night, actually. And there’s another Italian restaurant, but I forget the name.
And what do you eat at The Polo Bar?
Steak. To the vegetarians who are going to read this, I’m so sorry—but I really love eating steaks.
So, you’ve got some of the normal sponsors that a tennis player has: you wear Nike shoes and apparel, you play with Wilson racquets. But you’re also sponsored by Dobel tequila. Is that an important part of your life as a tennis professional?
[Laughing.] Not during the tournament, no.
When you do drink it, how are you drinking it—in margaritas? Shots? Do you sip it?
It depends on the mood—if I’m not in a good mood, I’ll just go for a shot. If I’m in a good mood and just want to enjoy my night, I’ll go for a margarita.
In my experience, tequila can be kind of like your game: It’s high-risk, high-reward. It can bring on a certain manic spirit—
I’m pretty good at controlling myself—I’m stopping myself after a couple of shots—but I do like tequila, especially a good one.
What do you do after the Open? Or does that depend whether you win or not?
It all depends, but if I’m going to stay till the end of this week [She’s trying to avoid saying, “If I win the whole tournament, like I desperately want to”—Ed.], I’m probably going to spend another week here in New York. If not, then I’m probably going to go to Dubai to prepare for [the China Open in] Beijing. It all depends on the result.
