"The whole match I was telling myself, 'Do not look there, please do not look'" - Sabalenka impresses in first round win with Federer keenly watching on

Aryna Sabalenka struggled at first to get to grips against her opponent Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah in the first round of the Australian Open, but in the end had little trouble sweeping the 20-year-old aside 6-4, 6-1.

After being broken instantly, the world number one managed to get on level terms before clinching another one late on in the set to propel her in front. She then took the reigns in the second set, not allowing her opponent a sniff before wrapping it up with ease with a third Australian Open title firmly on the cards.

"I’m super happy to get through this match," Sabalenka commented in her press conference after the victory. "I didn’t really start at my best and was struggling to find my rhythm, but in the last two games of the first set I found it. I was able to step in and play a little bit better tennis."

A noticeable stat from the match was that Sabalenka came to the net 22 times in the match, with her focusing more on serve and volley. "I prefer to be unpredictable. But yeah, I’ve definitely been working on serve-and-volley, and I’m super happy to be able to do it in a match," she said. "In practice it’s one thing, but to be fearless and do it in a match is something else. I’m really proud that I was able to show this tennis."

As she looks for glory, the four-time Grand Slam champion is always ready to change and adapt her game. "I think it’s very important for success — always working on your game, always developing as a player, and always searching for something new that can help you. That’s the key to being consistent: always bringing something new to the table. Over the years, we’ve developed my game a lot and added many new things. I’m really proud of the work I’ve done with my team."

After trailing in the early stages, Sabalenka got back to speed and barely had a scratch on her throughout the rest of the match. She put the sluggish start to it being the first match of the tournament. "First of all, it’s the first match, right? You’re always trying to figure out where you are."

Not just that, but the fact that it was a fresh face the other side of the court. "It was also an opponent I’d never played before, and I hadn’t really watched her games, so I didn’t know much about her," she admitted. "I was struggling to find the rhythm of her shots. I’m happy I managed to handle it and get the win in straight sets."

Sabalenka delved deeper into the specific part of Rakotomanga Rajaonah's game. "It wasn’t so much her game, but her serve," she confirmed. "It was a little awkward for me — not that heavy, not that fast — so I was trying to find the perfect return position. The balls were flying a lot and she was serving really good targets. It was a combination of things. In the end, I felt I had to step in and put as much pressure on her as possible, and it worked really well."

It is always a daunting experience to play your first match in a Grand Slam, especially if it is against the world number one. However, Sabalenka may have trumped that with her first Australian Open encounter. "I think it was against Ashleigh Barty on Rod Laver Arena — probably not the best experience for a first time, playing an Australian there," she said. "It wasn’t my best experience, to be honest, but it was also cool. She was in the top 30, and for me it was a really big match and a big opportunity to see where my game was at. Even though I lost badly, I learned a lot from that match."

There were some legends in the stand closely following the action. This included Australian tennis legend Rod Laver and six-time champion Roger Federer. Sabalenka was inspired by this company, revealing that she noticed their presence throughout the match.

"Of course I did — I’m a huge fan," she said with a smile. "The whole match I was telling myself, 'Do not look there, please do not look.' It’s incredible. I would never have thought that Roger Federer and Rod Laver would be sitting in the first row watching my match. That’s unbelievable."

A reporter then joked that was the reason why she was going to the net so often. "Yeah, of course. I just wanted to impress Roger with my game. I couldn’t do a tweener, but it’s okay — next time," she joked.