WHAT HAPPENED: No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka hopes that the only stumble on her way to a maiden Grand Slam singles title is the scary fall she took during her second-round victory at the 2021 US Open.
Sabalenka powered her way to a 6-3, 6-1 win over Tamara Zidansek on the Grandstand, also powering through a hand injury she suffered in the fifth game of the first set. Up 3-1 and returning serve at 30-30, Sabalenka slipped and fell onto the court while hitting a service return, with her right hand—while still grabbing hold of the racquet—breaking her fall. Sabalenka immediately flexed her fingers and rotated her wrist after lying on the court for about 10 seconds, and she continued to put an ice pack on the top of her fingers during subsequent changeovers.
“I was really scared that I broke [my finger] because my feeling was like it was really painful,” said Sabalenka, who was able to muster a little humor about the incident afterward. “I was really scared of my fingers, and I was thinking, 'This is such a lucky day.'”
In her first service game after the fall, she double-faulted on the first point before winning four straight points. The rest of the match took on that same pattern, with Sabalenka showing little effects from the injury and continuing to dominate Zidansek, a semifinalist at Roland Garros this spring, with her punishing groundstrokes. In only 59 minutes on the court, Sabalenka hit 24 winners compared to just 10 unforced errors.
“I was really worrying about my arm and my hand, and I'm really happy that I could finish this match,” said Sabalenka, who admitted that one of her fingers changed color and looked darker. “I have an extra day to see what's going on, and maybe to do the best recovery I can do.”
WHAT IT MEANS: Sabalenka struggled in her first-round match against Nina Stojanovic, being pushed to a third set before running away with the deciding set, 6-0, on Louis Armstrong Stadium. Playing on an outer court, and on a day where rain was in the forecast later, Sabalenka could not afford to be pushed deep into a match like she was on Monday.
“I had a lot of situations when the weather app was showing rain all day and then it was changing like in a second,” Sabalenka said. “So I was trying to focus on myself. I did a good warm-up because we could hit indoors. I was just like sitting in a quiet room where nobody else is. I was just trying to chill and relax and see what happens.”
MATCH POINT: Sabalenka is one win away from possibly meeting up with the player who helped her win her first Grand Slam title. Sabalenka won the 2019 US Open women’s doubles title with Elise Mertens, who also advanced to the third round with a win on Wednesday. The two are on a collision course in the Round of 16 so long as they can get past tough opponents on Friday—Sabalenka will face No. 26 seed Danielle Collins while Mertens, seeded No. 15, will take on No. 20 Ons Jabeur of Tunisia.
