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Andy Roddick believes Aryna Sabalenka “has every right to think she’s the best player in the world right now” after the Belarusian defended her title at the 2024 Australian Open.
The former world No 1 described Sabalenka as the “most consistent player” on the planet in light of her recent major results and praised her for resolving her “serving yips.”
Sabalenka defeated Zheng Qinwen 6-3, 6-2 in the final of the Australian Open on Saturday to claim her second Grand Slam title and defend the maiden crown she won in Melbourne last year.
The world No 2 was remarkably dominant during her title run as she did not drop a set in her seven matches and lost more than three games in just two of the 14 sets she won. These sets came in her 7-6(2), 6-4 semi-final victory over Coco Gauff.
The 25-year-old has now reached the semi-finals or better at the last six Grand Slam tournaments stretching back to the 2022 US Open – making her the most consistent WTA player in the sport’s biggest events in this period.
World No 1 and four-time major winner Iga Swiatek was upset in the third round of the Australian Open by Linda Noskova.
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Roddick highlighted how Sabalenka has solved the serving issues that caused a huge number of double faults in 2022 and lauded her performances at the majors.
“You love to see progression and hard work being rewarded. The most impressive thing is that 15 months ago she was dealing with the serving yips and there were questions about her mentality and faith in her own game,” the American told Betway.
“The physical attributes have been there from the word go, so credit to her for working through those issues, because this was comprehensive. I hope it’s as gratifying to her as everyone else feels it should be.
“She’s now made the semis or better in the last six majors, and I don’t know that any of us dummies would have looked at her two years ago and said that she was going to be the most consistent player on Earth. She has every right to think that she’s the best player in the world right now.”
The 2003 US Open champion also credited new world No 7 Zheng for how she dealt with the pressure of many seeded players on her side of the Australian Open draw losing early.
“I also thought Qinwen Zheng was great. A lot of seeds fell early on her side of the draw, but there’s a certain pressure that comes with knowing from the round of 16 that you have a real opportunity of making a Grand Slam final. To win six matches and make that a reality is impressive in itself,” Roddick added.
“Her life is going to change now. Making a final and being from the Chinese market means there’s going to be a lot of eyeballs on her moving forward, but she certainly passes the eye test.”
