How Aryna Sabalenka’s late father became her ‘power’ after moving US Open tribute
Aryna Sabalenka silenced her critics and banished her 2025 Grand Slam demons with an impressive victory at the US Open on Saturday — and poignantly revealed how her late father continues to motivate her success.
World No 1 Sabalenka picked up a staggering $5,000,000 in prize money for her triumph in New York, the biggest payout in women’s tennis history, while victory over Amanda Anisimova also saw her become the first woman since Serena Williams in 2014 to successfully defend the US Open title.
Victory for Sabalenka was her fourth Grand Slam singles title overall, with her back-to-back US Open titles following on from Australian Open victories in 2023 and 2024.
The Belarusian’s status as one of the leading players of her era is now more than secured, and her position in the all-time standings will have been significantly boosted with this latest triumph.
Sabalenka’s fan base is growing across the globe, but few have supported her quite like her father, Sergey, and mother, Yulia, have.
The 27-year-old’s father was a particularly important support for her, and together the pair dreamed of the star winning multiple Grand Slam titles and reaching world No 1.
However, tragedy struck when the former ice hockey player passed away aged only 43 in 2019, reportedly of meningitis.
Speaking in the Netflix documentary Break Point, Sabalenka revealed her frustration that — at the time — she had not fulfilled their wish of winning a major title before the age of 25.
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But she would ultimately win her first Australian Open title aged 24 in 2023, and the 27-year-old now also has over a year as the world No 1 to her name alongside her four singles majors.
Unsurprisingly, Sabalenka’s father never remains too far away from her thoughts.
And, when asked about his impact and influence following her triumph on Saturday, the Belarusian offered a short — but incredibly touching — answer.
She said: “Yeah, it means a lot.
“And, you know, when he passed away, you know, I was very depressed, and it was a tough moment for me, for my family.
“But in that moment, I decided to take it as motivation to put our family name and the history. And I know that he’s — I want to believe — and I think I feel his protection from up there.
“And, I know that he became my power. So it means a lot.”
Sabalenka’s mother was not present in New York for her victory, though she was joined by her long-term boyfriend, Georgios Frangulis, and her coaching team, led by Anton Dubrov.
Dubrov and fitness trainer Jason Stacey have been key members of her team for several years, with the world No 1 refusing to split with Dubrov when he offered to resign in 2022, amid her service woes.
And, while her team remains close-knit, Sabalenka opened up further about the importance of working on and protecting her mental health in recent years.
“Well, mental health, it’s very important,” added Sabalenka.
“I’ve been working with psychologists for four or five years, and she helped me a lot at the beginning, especially to, you know, to understand that everything is possible as long as you put the work in and you dedicate your time, life for your dream.
“And she helped me a lot. But then at some point, I realized that I was relying on her so much. I thought that: ‘Okay, like, she has to fix me. She has to give me, give me, give me an answer.’
“And so I wasn’t really taking the responsibility over my actions, and I was making the same mistake over and over again, and I was getting upset that it’s not helping.
“So at some point I decided, okay, I have to take responsibility and I have to figure it by myself by, like, thinking, like, you know, like, analyzing and understanding myself better. And I think it actually worked really well.
“I think that was the right move for me. But you never know, you know, like, maybe one day I’ll feel like, okay, I need someone to talk to, I need someone to share.”
