Aryna Sabalenka reflects on near retirement amid double-fault struggles: “I was thinking, it's time to give up"

Aryna Sabalenka revealed that she once considered retiring a few years ago when she was plagued by persistent double faults. From the start of her career, the Belarusian displayed impressive serving power, ranking among the top players for aces in 2020, trailing only Elena Rybakina and Serena Williams, and in 2021 finishing second only to Karolina Pliskova.

However, double faults were a major issue. In 2020, 2021, and 2022, she led the Tour in double faults. In 2022 alone, she committed a staggering 428 double faults, 139 more than the second-place Ekaterina Alexandrova.

Sabalenka almost quit tennis: "I had to stay strong

Despite these struggles, Sabalenka achieved commendable results, finishing the 2018 and 2019 seasons ranked No. 11. She won titles like the 2019 WTA Elite Trophy and Wuhan Open, and started 2020 with a victory at the Qatar Open, ending that season in the top 10 for the first time in her career.

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However, in key matches, double faults proved costly, leading to defeats against top rivals. Reflecting on that period, Sabalenka shared, "It took me a lot to get where I am right now, and I’ve had to make a lot of sacrifices. It has definitely taken a lot of hard work, and it’s a long process. It’s not something that happens just by one click."

"A time that comes to mind where I had to show my resilience and where I was really close to saying, ‘Okay, I’m done,’ was two or three years ago when I was double-faulting non-stop and everything seemed to be going wrong," she added.

Aryna Sabalenka at 2025 Brisbane International.

The current World No. 1 made significant progress in 2024, recording 307 aces against 205 double faults, keeping her out of the top 15 for most double faults on the Tour. She also played 15 more matches than in 2022. Her double faults dropped from an average of 7.78 per match to just 2.92 per match.

"I was thinking to myself, Okay, it’s time for me to give up and to quit … it’s time for me to retire,” Sabalenka revealed. “But then I realised I have so much love for the sport, and there are so many things behind the scenes that I just couldn’t give up."

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"I had to stay strong and try one more time, try something else to figure out my problem, and I think that was the turning point for me in my career,” the three-time Grand Slam champion added. "My dream is to inspire people, to be a fighter, and to be an example of not giving up and going through whatever life throws at me."

Sabalenka is now preparing to compete in the Australian Open, where she is the two-time defending champion. She started the season on a high note, winning her first title of the year at the Brisbane International. Along the way, she defeated opponents like Yulia Putintseva and Mirra Andreeva and came back from a set down to beat the surprising Polina Kudermetova in the final. Across five matches, she hit 25 aces and committed just three double faults.

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