"Can she hold onto that?": Aryna Sabalenka warned of being 'hunted' after becoming world number one

Former American player CoCo Vandeweghe believes Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka will be ‘hunted’ after returning to the top of the WTA rankings. The 26-year-old has recentl return to the top after having fabulous time on the court in the recent months. She replaced Poland’s Iga Swiatek who has played no tennis after the US Open.

Vandeweghe has been recently quoted in a report where she warned Sabalenka of being ‘hunted’ after returning to the top in women’s tennis. “It’s because she has the momentum. She’s coming off the US Open, she hasn’t really played much post-US Open,” she said. “Where you see people playing that are trying to get some momentum back, I’m going to drop Iga in that list, I’m going to drop Jessie Pegula in that list – even though Jessie made the finals [of the US Open].

She continued by saying: “Because they have a sour taste in their mouth from a loss that they think maybe they shouldn’t have had. Aryna is the hunted and it’s also: what is she going to do with that big target on her back? For so long it’s been Iga that’s had that big target on her back and everyone’s chasing Iga to take that No 1 ranking, to beat her on the biggest stages. Now, Sabalenka’s going to have that mantle, and what’s she going to be able to do with it? Can she hold onto that? Can she step up to that occasion?”

Sabalenka is having a fabulous season. For the first time in her career, she won two Grand Slams in a single season. The Minsk-born star won the Australian Open after beating China’s Zheng Qinwen in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-2. She later went on to win the US Open after beating America’s Jessica Pegula in the final in straight sets with a score of 7-5, 7-5.