Andy Roddick thinks he knows the reason for Aryna Sabalenka’s capitulation at Roland Garros
The pressure of winning her very first Roland Garros title certainly got to Aryna Sabalenka as she fell to a strange loss to Diana Shnaider in the quarter-finals.
Despite the blustery winds on Philippe-Chatrier, Sabalenka looked in full control against Shnaider and undoubtedly the favourite to make the semi-finals.
At 6-3, 4-1 up, Sabalenka did the unthinkable and crumbled. 10 games in a row later and Sabalenka was exiting the competition in unfathomable circumstances.
Chris Evert dubbed Sabalenka’s collapse a ‘meltdown’, while Sabalenka herself was lost for words about what had happened on Philippe-Chatrier.
“No thoughts, no emotions. I want to quit tennis right now. We’ll see in a few days if I’m back on track,” said Sabalenka in her post-match press conference.
“Maybe I’m focusing too much on the fact that I’ve never won a Slam on them, and maybe that makes me overthink things, makes me over-emotional at some moments.
“This is something I actually have to step back from and try to find a solution, because I’m so tired of losing like this – not in the best way, just because I was over-emotional.”
Roddick, who has been watching the World No. 1 with intrigue, believes Sabalenka’s mental collapse is down to one simple issue: fatigue.
Speaking on Served, he said: “I don’t think it’s a month-long hangover. I think it’s an accumulation of constantly always having to be the best or it’s a disappointment.
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“I mean, he [coach Jason Stacy] talked about it’s like finals are bust, right? Like that’s a that is a weird one to live in, man. Like the shadow that you’ve created for yourself is a different one.”
Roddick is certain the World No. 1 can continue to win Grand Slams despite her setback at Roland Garros, however.
“She’ll be back. She’s going to win majors,” predicted Roddick. “As we stand now, her and Rybakina are favorites for Wimbledon. [She has] never won Wimbledon.
“She has a game that’s really made for Wimbledon. She’s always done well there. She’ll be back. This was just shocking because it was like dominant. I’m like, okay, finally we have some normalcy in this tournament and then f*** me.”
Sabalenka’s recent run at Grand Slams is an incredibly big worry, with just one major victory in her last six appearances at the biggest events on the tennis calendar..
The World No. 1’s victory at the US Open in 2025, when she defeated Amanda Anisimova in the final, is her only victory since the start of the 2025 season and, for a World No. 1, that is simply not good enough.
