It all began at the 2023 US Open for Aryna Sabalenka, which was a special tournament for her. The Belarusian star reached the summit clash of the tournament for the first time then, and although she lost in the final against Coco Gauff, Sabalenka fulfilled a dream of her late father after the tournament. “I know my dad would be proud of me,” she said. She became the World Number 1 for the first time in her career, and it was an emotional moment for the 27-year-old. Fast forward to 2025, and Sabalenka continues to rule the women’s circuit. However, she made a candid confession about her top spot in the WTA rankings.
Earlier today, Sabalenka made a winning start to her 2025 French Open campaign. She dominated the proceedings right from the word go, taking no time in dispatching the challenge of Kamilla Rakhimova in straight sets 6-1, 6-0. Subsequently, she was asked if she carried the weight of the World Number 1 tag in the tournament.
Sabalenka revealed, “Honestly, I don’t think about that. Of course, it’s always been my goal to reach the World No. 1 position. But, at this stage of my career, it doesn’t really matter. You just have to focus on yourself. You have to improve your game and get better, basically, every day.”
Owing to her consistent run over the past few years, Sabalenka has cemented her position at the top of the WTA rankings. She currently has 10,683 ranking points and leads the second-placed Coco Gauff, who has 6,863 points to her name. With a huge lead to defend, it doesn’t look like anyone would dethrone Sabalenka anytime soon.
Meanwhile, Sabalenka is also the favorite to win this year’s French Open. Although she has never gone past the semifinal at Roland Garros, the Belarusian star is in good nick recently. Additionally, she could also be helped by Iga Swiatek’s downfall of late, as she has slipped to No. 5 in the WTA rankings. As a result, tennis legends and experts picked Sabalenka as their favorite.
Aryna Sabalenka dubbed to become the 2025 French Open champion
Over the past three editions of the French Open, Iga Swiatek has won the title in Paris each time. However, this time around, Sabalenka looks in prime form to dethrone Swiatek and win her maiden French Open title. Legends and experts like Pam Shriver and Bill Connelly picked the Belarusian star to win the tournament.
Talking about this, Shriver said, “It’s a top-heavy women’s draw that is anchored by Sabalenka, who is still my pick to win her first Roland Garros. Sabalenka by far has been the best player over the past 12 months, winning many clutch matches.” Further, Connelly mentioned, “Sabalenka. She’s just always there in the late rounds. She has reached six finals in her eight events in 2025, and she has reached the finals in five of her past eight Slams as well. It feels odd going against Swiatek, but it’s more that I’m going for the world No. 1.”
Their predictions were seconded by Sabalenka by her performance today. She produced a flawless display to breeze into the second round in Paris. Up next, she will take on Jil Teichmann in the second-round clash on Wednesday.
The post “Doesn’t Really Matter” – Aryna Sabalenka Shrugs off Her Biggest Milestone Amid French Open Hype appeared first on EssentiallySports.
