“Power triumphs everything,” Serena Williams’ childhood coach, Rick Macci, said this while talking about Aryna Sabalenka in a previous interview. He spoke about how impressed she has been with her aggressive style of play. Later on in another instance, while describing the same, he drew a bold comparison saying, “When locked, loaded, and ready to launch Sabalenka off both wings with her elite on the rise timing is the best I have seen since Serena. She can snatch the racquet out of your hand with her 90-mile-an-hour howitzers. Her toughest opponent right now is in the Mirror. @SabalenkaA.” Both Serena Williams and Aryna Sabalenka emphasized raw power over finesse, but is Sabalenka the most powerful tennis player at the moment? Well, her opponent, Qinwen Zheng, has this answer!
Aryna Sabalenka recently secured her spot in the SF of the 2025 French Open by defeating China’s Qinwen Zheng by 7-6(3),6-3 in the QF. Following this match, during the press conference, she was asked if she had played a player more powerful than her in a match. In reply to this, she laughed and said, “I don’t think I’ve ever played someone who is more powerful than me. And honestly, I don’t care if the player is gonna go out there and try to outhit me or if they’re gonna try to change the rhythm and make me move and run. Over the years, I evolved my game a lot. I think I’m ready to play against powerful players and whoever is gonna make me run and work for the point. Right now at this point in my career, I don’t really care. But when it comes to the power, I like it. Because then it’s like ‘ok, you wanna see the power? Let me show you something’. I always take it as a challenge and like, ok, let’s see who’s better today.“
But having said that, when one of the journalists reminded her of her sole encounter with Serena Williams at the 2021 AO, she dismissed the American’s power advantage in her 4-6,6-2,4-6 defeat. Sabalenka said, “I think that she wasn’t really more powerful than me in that match. But physically, she was better than me and she put more balls back on my side than I did. I didn’t really feel like she overpowered me in that game.“
Was Qinwen Zheng really outplayed by Sabalenka’s power game in this QF match? Well, in reply to this, the Chinese said, “Not really. I think I’m just getting tight because it’s the French Open quarterfinals. Doesn’t matter who I face, I will be really tight. I have so much hunger in the French Open. I think this court makes my performance… I will say today I didn’t even perform at 60-70%. When I hit with my sparring, they’re men. So, for sure, they will hit harder than her. For me, it’s not a problem. I just wish I could do better on the court. That’s it.”
Qinwen Zheng says the occasion got to her in her match against Aryna Sabalenka, ‘I will say today I didn’t even perform at 60-70%’
“I wanted to ask you about playing Sabalenka. She’s so powerful. Have you ever played someone more powerful than her? Also, she grunts really… pic.twitter.com/BEqYdHPJAy
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) June 3, 2025
This was Sabalenka’s eighth meeting with Zheng and before this tournament, the Chinese star had in fact outclassed her 6-4,6-3 in the QF of the 2025 Italian Open. So, it was more like a revenge match for the world number one, and with this win, she has now taken her H2H record to 7-1 against Qinwen Zheng.
Speaking about her previous encounter with the Chinese, Aryna Sabalenaks said she was pretty much exhausted in Rome, and she claims that she’s now actually “glad” to have lost that match because she needed a little break before the French Open.
While sharing his thoughts on this match, the tennis legend, Mats Wilander, said, “[Aryna] Sabalenka today, struggled a bit in the first set but she played great in the big points. It was really tricky out there, but that’s why she’s number one.” Next up for her is her arch-rival, Iga Swiatek. Looking at her form in this tournament, she clearly looks like a formidable opponent against the defending champion. But what different thing Sabalenka has been doing recently that has brought her so much success?
American tennis legend explains what Aryna Sabalenka has been doing better than any other player right now
Aryna Sabalenka has been one of the most consistent players in the last couple of seasons. After clinching two major titles last year, she started the 2025 season by winning the Brisbane International and then making it to the final at the AO. Although she had a relatively quiet Middle East swing, Sabalenka came back strongly at the ‘Sunshine Doubles‘. She reached the final in Indian Wells but failed to make it count at that time. However, Sabalenka didn’t miss her chances to clinch the other one in Miami. Even on clay, she won the Madrid Open this year.
So while analyzing her recent run and her secret to success, Andy Roddick claimed, “She saves a set point with a screaming winner down the line, and the next one she is feathering some touch cross at a huge moment. Sabalenka might be the most match tough person on Earth right now, men or women. She gets into those gritty moments in matches, and it feels like her living room. It’s what she does every week and she comes up good most of the time right now. With a different variety, because she is so good at the power, that is what takes most of the conversation but her ability to problem solve, she is getting better off the corners on defence.”
Roddick believes this is what separates Aryna Sabalenka from other players. Interestingly, even earlier, while speaking about her game, Sabalenka’s coach, Anton Dubrov, claimed, “Aryna understands that power is her main weapon because many in the women’s tour struggle to return balls with the same speed. If an opponent isn’t moving well and starts playing short, it’s ideal for Aryna to throw her full weight into her forehand.“
While her super-aggressive style of play has brought success against most opponents, she has struggled a bit against someone like Iga Swiatek. Her current H2H record against the Pole is 4-8. Can she beat the defending champion this time and get closer to clinching her first Roland Garros title?
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