EYES ON THE PRIZEL: Sabalenka aims to finally conquer Garros glory

PARIS, France (AFP) — Aryna Sabalenka said she is ready, in body and mind, to conquer clay and take her first Roland Garros title.

“I know how to play on clay, and it’s all about being physically and mentally healthy, to go for it, and to be ready to fight,” she said at the media day ahead of the tournament’s start on Sunday.

Sabalenka, the top-ranked woman for approaching two years, has only won three titles on clay, all in Madrid. Her best showing in the clay-court Grand Slam was last year when she lost the final in three sets to Coco Gauff.

“All I can say is that I’m ready to fight, and, of course, I hope to do a little bit better than I did last year,” said the Belarusian, who turned 28 earlier in May.

Earlier this spring, Sabalenka completed a victorious “Sunshine Double” on the hard courts at Indian Wells and Miami, before losing momentum on clay.

At Madrid, she lost in the quarter-finals to Hailey Baptiste. In Rome, she only won one match before falling to Sorana Cirstea.

“I struggled at the beginning of the clay season physically, to be honest,” she said on Friday. “Right now, I feel 100 percent.”

“I’m healed everywhere and I’m ready to go.”

Asked if she would be satisfied if she did not win, Sabalenka’s answer showed a No. 1’s mindset.

“I think all of us are here just for one reason, you know.”

Sabalenka said that her improved consistency is not only the product of physical health but also of overcoming her tendency to melt down mentally on court when things didn’t go her way.

“My emotions were destroying my game, and my level was dropping dramatically when I would just start overreacting on everything,” she said.

“At the same time, my opponents would see that and they would step in and play better.”

Controlling her emotions had two clear benefits, she said.

“First of all, making sure that my opponent doesn’t see what’s going on in my head, and at the same time, to perform better and to stay in the zone, you know, like it was a huge improvement over the years in my career and really helped me to level up,” she explained.

She added that working on her own game prepares her better to cope with what opponents throw at her.

“Mostly I’m focusing on myself and making sure that I have all of the tools I’ll need to play against all of the players,” she said.

“Focusing on myself really helped me to be able to adjust to each player.”