Belarusian tennis star Aryna Sabalenka knows how to turn the tables. Powerful on grass and hard courts, Sabalenka made an impressive run on clay this season. Although Naomi Osaka and Jessica Pegula are not too fond of clay, the Belarusian surprised all with her recent take on the surface. As Sabalenka dropped her opinion, people could see the hunger inside her for being an all-rounder. Is she aiming at the US Open?

Sabalenka will play at the Canadian Open Round of 32 tomorrow. Before that, she was asked how she aims to use her best results on clay surfaces to boost her confidence for the hard court season, where she excels. In her response, Sabalenka surprised everyone as she mentioned her liking for the dirt. “I love to play on clay court. I don’t know why people think that this is not my best surface. I probably feel better on clay than on hard, to be honest. But, yeah, result-wise, I’m better on hard court,” said the Belarusian WTA star.

Sabalenka explained the difference between playing on clay and hard surfaces. She revealed how “it’s longer rallies, you need to build a point, you need to finish the point. It’s definitely good thing for the hard court where the points become shorter and faster, and probably physically you’re better after clay court because after playing such long rallies, you feel much better playing on hard court.” 

She further said that she is enhancing her physical ability with her sessions on the clay surface and aiming to do better on hard courts. From her statement, it felt as if the Belarusian tennis star is confident about the upcoming Canadian Open.

Sabalenka performed quite well on clay this season. She reached the finals of the Madrid Open and the Italian Open. She also reached the quarterfinals of the French Open and then lost to Mirra Andreeva. Her clay results are quite good, given that she is said to be average on the surface. While Sabalenka refuted the claim, Osaka and Pegula had different opinions about their performance and skills on the clay surface.

Despite Aryna Sabalenka’s confidence, Naomi Osaka and Jessica Pegula have different opinions about clay surface

Osaka and Pegula have their fair share of difficulties on clay. Both have said that it is not their favorite surface. Osaka particularly, failed to pass the Roland Garros third round in all six appearances and couldn’t reach one WTA final on clay surface. The Japanese player had to dedicate quite some time to become a challenge on clay. “I think I’ve made a significant amount of progress and I feel like people can see that throughout the tournaments that I’ve played, but I feel like I’ve dedicated a lot of time to learning about clay,” said Osaka. 

On the other hand, Pegula also expressed that clay isn’t her favorite season, and she didn’t mind skipping it this season. An injury sustained just before the clay season caused her to miss out on the entire swing, even the French Open. While Pegula and Osaka’s revelations show the real challenges of the athletes, Sabalenka’s statements showcase how she is dedicated to becoming one of the GOATs of modern tennis with perfection on all surfaces.

Sabalenka made everyone do a double take with her recent take on the clay surface. Ditching the fear of average performance, Sabalenka became an example of how hard work helps people achieve things beyond their skills.