After five rounds at the Miami Open, Aryna Sabalenka would be forgiven for unplugging from tennis during her off-hours. But the world No. 1 revealed new motivation for studying her fellow competitors after reaching her first final at the Hard Rock Stadium.
“I think whenever I watch tennis, I'm more looking into the mental side of the game,” Sabalenka said in her post-match press conference on Thursday.
Perhaps the studying has paid off: the three-time Grand Slam champion has looked remarkably clutch in Miami, culminating with a dominant 6-2, 6-2 semifinal performance against No. 6 seed Jasmine Paolini.
“I see some of the things and I'm curious, like, ‘Okay, how the player going to handle this pressure? Especially men's, like what they are going to do under this pressure?’” Sabalenka said.