Aryna Sabalenka sends warning to Iga Swiatek – ‘I’ll keep pushing myself and do everything I can’

Aryna Sabalenka missed another golden opportunity to replace Iga Swiatek at No 1 in the WTA Rankings, but she has vowed to “keep pushing” to finish the year at the top.

With Swiatek – who has topped the rankings since April last year – losing in the quarter-finals against Elina Svitolina, it opened the door for Sabalenka to become world No 1 for the first time in her career.

The reigning Australian Open champion, though, had to reach the final at Wimbledon to overtake the Pole in the rankings following the conclusion of the grass-court Grand Slam.

However, the world No 2 suffered a 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 3-6 defeat at the hands of last year’s runner-up and sixth seed Ons Jabeur in the semi-final on Thursday.

It means Swiatek will stay top, but her lead will be reduced to 574 points and Sabalenka is now focused on the year-end ranking.

Asked after the match against Jabeur if the No 1 ranking was on her mind, Sabalenka replied: “I wouldn’t say that I was thinking about that. I mean, for me it’s more about how you finish the year than during the year you’re first, second, you just go back and forth.

“For me it’s more about finish the year. I’ll keep pushing myself and do everything I can to finish this year as world No 1.”

The North American hard-court swing is up next and the Canadian Open is the first big tournament as 1,000 points will be up for grabs for the winner. Both Sabalenka and Swiatek lost in the third round last year.

Swiatek also lost in the third round of the Cincinnati Open while Sabalenka reached the semi-final while the Pole won the US Open while the Belerasian fell in the last four.

Despite missing out on the Wimbledon title and the No 1 ranking, Sabalenka has a lot to be proud about already in 2023.

She has already won her maiden Grand Slam, the Australian Open, and is sitting at a career-best No 2 in the WTA Rankings.

“It’s definitely one of the best years so far. I mean, I can’t complain about my results this year, to be honest,” she said.

“The further you go, the more you want. It’s still tough to, yeah, recover after these kind of matches.

“What do I expect at the US Open? Well, just do better. If I get to the semi-finals, just do better than I did in the last semi-finals.”