MASON − When Aryna Sabalenka sat down for her pre-tournament press conference at the Cincinnati Open, the first thing that stood out was her smile.
Going into the event, one wouldn't be surprised if Sabalenka was unhappy given her recent play, but the World No. 1 is determined not to look back. At least, not yet.
The 28-year-old hard-hitting Belarusian has spent the better part of the past two years on top of women's tennis, building a résumé that includes four Grand Slam singles titles and a sustained run as the world's top player.
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But with Sabalenka approaching her 95th consecutive week atop the rankings, she isn't interested in stopping to appreciate how far she's come.
"I don't want to stop and look back," she said. "Every time I try to, I get a little bit crazy and emotional because it took a lot of work and a lot of tough moments to go through.
"I try to focus on staying present and doing everything I can now."
Sabalenka continues to push forward, and that mindset could be particularly important this week at the Lindner Family Tennis Center as she arrives looking to rediscover the form that made her nearly unbeatable earlier this season.
In March, Sabalenka followed a trip to the Australian Open finals with back-to-back WTA1000 titles at Indian Wells and the Miami Open. Since then, Sabalenka has cooled down considerably, reaching just one semifinal (WTA500 Berlin Open) in six events. She is coming off a fourth-round exit at the Canadian Open in Toronto to Russia's Ekaterina Alexandrova.
For a player who has spent so much time hoisting trophies, the stretch has been disappointing.
"This summer, I had huge expectations that I'd succeed in the tournaments, and I desperately wanted to," Sabalenka said. "But my body stopped me from that, and some things didn't really work my way."
Everyone in the tennis world seems to have an answer from Kim Clijsters to Andy Roddick. For Sabalenka, the answer was a reset. Her YouTube pageshows a recent trip to Mykonos and she has her hands full with her puppy Ash, a Cavalier King Charles.
"I wanted to stay away from tennis for a little bit just so I could refresh, restart and be hungry again," Sabalenka said.
That hunger is what she hopes to bring to Cincinnati, and the timing could be right. Sabalenka has historically enjoyed the summer hard court swing in the states, which includes back-to-back US Open titles and a Rookwood Cup here in Mason two years ago. She is 21-7 overall in Cincinnati main draw matches across eight appearances, also reaching the semifinals three times (2018, 2022 and 2023).
But more important than recent history, she arrives without the same expectations she had early in the summer.
"That's why I love this time (of the season)," she said. "There are no expectations. I'll just go out there, compete and fight."
That attitude may sound surprising coming from the world's No. 1 player, who is fighting to stay in that position. She is just over a month away from becoming the sixth WTA player to hold the No. 1 spot for 100-plus weeks, joining Chris Evert (113), Ashleigh Barty (114), Martina Navratilova (156), Steffi Graf (186) and Serena Williams (186). Sabalenka's first stint at No. 1 lasted eight weeks from September-November 2023.
Elena Rybakina, who beat Sabalenka for the Australian Open crown, is within 500 points of No. 1.
But a slumping summer has helped Sabalenka learn not to battle a top-ranked opponent on the other side of the net while also fighting lofty expectations. Being No. 1 doesn't drive her the way it once did.
"Everyone wants to beat you," Sabalenka said. "I feel like it's the same if you're No. 1, No. 2 or No. 10. It doesn't really matter what the ranking is."
There's no denying that No. 1 comes with an unmistakable target, but Sabalenka doesn't mind being the hunted.
"I've always enjoyed that," she said. "I love having the target on my back."
That's part of the confidence of Sabalenka's approach. Despite a 21-month stay at World No. 1, she knows the rankings can change and that losing is a part of tennis. She also knows that spending too much time worrying about either can distract from what actually matters. That's why a summer that hasn't gone according to plan is on the backburner in Mason.
"I have no fear," Sabalenka said. "That's what I plan to do: compete, fight and enjoy."
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Aryna Sabalenka unfazed by summer slump heading into Cincinnati Open
