Aryna Sabalenka skips Doha Open for second consecutive year following 2024 Australian Open triumph
Reigning Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka will be skipping the 2024 Qatar Open, which starts from Sunday, February 11 in Doha. This is the second consecutive year that the Belarusian has opted out of the WTA 1000 tournament, which she won in 2020.
The 22nd edition of the women’s tennis tournament will be played on outdoor hard courts at the International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha. The tournament will feature top women players such as defending champion Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina, and Ons Jabeur.
Sabalenka, currently ranked No. 2 in the world, recently defended her Australian Open title in Melbourne, defeating Zheng Qinwen 6-3, 6-2 in the final last month.
Tennis journalist Jose Morgado confirmed the news of Sabalenka’s withdrawal on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, February 2.
“Sabalenka won’t play Doha,” the tweet read.
The 25-year-old has made three appearances in the Doha Open since 2020. She won the title in 2020, beating Petra Kvitova in the final in straight sets. However, she lost in the second round in 2021, falling to Garbine Muguruza in three sets.
Aryna Sabalenka reached the quarterfinals of the competition in 2022, where she was defeated by World No. 1 and eventual winner, Swiatek, in straight sets.
A look into Aryna Sabalenka’s performance at the 2024 Australian Open
Aryna Sabalenka successfully defended her Australian Open title last month, becoming the first woman to win back-to-back titles in Melbourne since Victoria Azarenka in 2012-13.
Aryna Sabalenka was unstoppable throughout the tournament and didn’t drop a single set in seven matches, which included a dominant win over China’s Zheng Qinwen in the final. The Belarusian breezed past Ella Seidel, Brenda Fruhvirtova, 28th seed Lesia Tsurenko, Amanda Anisimova, and ninth seed Barbora Krejcikova, dropping only 16 games in the process.
The semifinals pitted Sabalenka against fourth seed Coco Gauff, who had stunned Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk in the quarterfinals. Gauff, who defeated Sabalenka in the 2023 US Open final, reached the semifinals in Melbourne for the first time. The American pushed the first set into a tie-break, but Sabalenka fought back to win the match, 7-6(2), 6-4.
In the final, World No. 2 met Zheng Qinwen, who became the first Chinese player to reach a Grand Slam singles final since Li Na in 2014. Sabalenka wrapped up the match in an hour and 16 minutes, lifting the trophy for the second time.
