Sabalenka, after losing No. 1 at the US Open: “It was a lot of fun and I had a great time, but why do they say I was partying and didn’t train”

The Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka He stopped his training for a few moments to see how the Kazakh Elena Rybakina closed her match against the Chinese Qinwen Zhengwhich meant the change in world number one in the post-tournament ranking. After 99 consecutive weeks at the helm, the current US Open champion gave up her throne in the rankings.

Sabalenka, who was at the expense of Rybakina not reaching the semifinals, announced days before that her interest was focused on winning for the third consecutive time in Flushing Meadows, emulating the historic ‘three peat’ of the Americans Serena Williams and Chris Evert.

Sabalenka delivers No. 1 in part because her results are far from the usual level. Everything has gone downhill since he did the double Indian Wells-Miami. And when an athlete’s performance drops, doubts grow and so do suspicions.

The tennis player revealed a busy schedule of events prior to her participation in the last Grand Slam of the season. He exposed them on social networks, there were people who wondered if so many events outside the track were excessive. However, stars have always had many commitments to fulfill, with sponsors, media, tournaments, as well as more private matters.

Sabalenka was angered by suspicions that she was neglecting her preparation. “It’s a joke that you ask me about this. If you party, it’s fun. Why do you say that? Why do you think something like that? What kind of question is that? Just because I published something about activities with brands, do you think I’ve been partying instead of training?” he reprimanded several journalists, who insisted on the matter for days.

“I choose the people and brands I work with very carefully. I need to feel really comfortable with them so as not to lose energy. I really enjoy the time I spend with my sponsors and with the people who work for them. I have fun. It’s like my hobby outside of my tennis calendar and, in fact, it fills me with energy,” she stressed.

He insisted that he knows how to make his work on the track compatible with what he does off it. “I trained, I recovered. And in my free time I went to dinners with sponsors. And it was fun, I had a great time, without neglecting tennis.”

He starred in an extensive report with Vogue magazine. “For me, an incredible experience. If ten years ago you had said to me, ‘Oh, by the way, do you know that in ten years you will be talking to Vogue and participating in all these cool events?’ “I wouldn’t have believed it.”

He made it clear. “It’s like my hobby outside of tennis. All the planning revolves around tennis. None of those events distract me or harm me at all,” says Sabalenka, who this Thursday, Spanish dawn on Saturday, at one o’clock, opens the semifinal day against the American Jessica Pegula.

Then clash between Elena Rybakina and Coco Gauff. The top four in the ranking, taking the penultimate round. It hasn’t happened since Wimbledon 2009.