Aryna Sabalenka‘s dream of winning a maiden French Open title came to a heartbreaking end on Wednesday as the world number one suffered one of the most dramatic defeats of her Grand Slam career. Leading comfortably against Russia’s Diana Shnaider in the quarterfinals at Roland Garros, Sabalenka appeared firmly on course for a place in the last four before an astonishing collapse saw her exit the tournament in three sets.
The Belarusian star looked in complete control on Court Philippe Chatrier after claiming the opening set 6-3 and building a commanding 4-1 lead in the second set with a double break advantage. At one stage, she stood just a few points away from victory. However, momentum shifted dramatically as Shnaider mounted a remarkable comeback, winning 7-5, 6-0 in the final two sets to complete a stunning 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 victory.
The defeat was particularly painful for Sabalenka, who entered the quarterfinals as the overwhelming favourite to lift the title. With defending champion Coco Gauff, four-time Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek and Australian Open winner Elena Rybakina already eliminated, the tournament had opened up significantly for the world number one.
Instead, Sabalenka found herself struggling mentally as the match slipped away. “Just want to quit tennis right now,” Sabalenka said. “We’ll see in a few days. Hopefully I’ll get back on track mentally.” Reflecting on the turning point of the match, she admitted that her biggest battle was not physical but psychological.
“I guess mentally I got into a very deep, deep, dark hole over there, and I just couldn’t get back mentally on track,” Sabalenka told reporters.
The four-time Grand Slam champion finished the match with a staggering 57 unforced errors, many of which came during the decisive stages as frustration began to take over. Shnaider, meanwhile, grew stronger with every game and produced an almost flawless deciding set, committing only four unforced errors while taking advantage of Sabalenka’s struggles. For Sabalenka, the loss carried echoes of previous disappointments at major tournaments away from hard courts. Despite her dominance on the WTA Tour and four Grand Slam titles, all of her major triumphs have come on hard courts. Roland Garros and Wimbledon continue to remain elusive targets.
The 28-year-old believes the pressure she places on herself to win those titles may be contributing to her emotional struggles during crucial matches.
“I really feel great on clay. I feel great on grass,” she said. “I think just maybe I’m focusing too much that I never won a Slam on each, you know, and maybe it’s kind of like making me overthink stuff, makes me overly emotional at some moment.
“This is something that I actually have to kind of step back and kind of try to find a solution, because I just am so tired of me losing some matches not in the best way just because I was overemotional.”
The conditions in Paris also became a talking point after strong winds swept across the court throughout the match. Sabalenka questioned the decision to keep the roof open on Court Philippe Chatrier despite the challenging weather, although she stopped short of using it as an excuse for the defeat.
“I don’t know why would they keep the roof open when it’s crazy windy,” bemoaned Sabalenka. “But how can I complain if almost for the whole match everything was working okay for me, but then it just slipped away.
“I feel like it (the wind) was getting crazy maybe just because mentally I wasn’t really okay… “I don’t know why would they keep it open? Even though I was winning, it was very dirty tennis. I don’t know how people could actually just sit there and watch me play. Then at some point she stepped in, and she played unbelievable in those conditions.”
Despite the crushing loss, Sabalenka acknowledged the strength of the remaining field. Shnaider’s victory secured her first Grand Slam semifinal appearance, where she will face Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska. Elsewhere in the draw, rising stars such as Mirra Andreeva and Marta Kostyuk have also impressed throughout the tournament.
“Marta is in great shape. Mirra is playing great tennis… Maja – she’s also playing really great tennis,” added Sabalenka. “I mean, maybe this match shows I had the least… chance (out of the remaining players).”
While her immediate reaction reflected disappointment and frustration, Sabalenka’s comments also highlighted the emotional toll that elite competition can have on athletes. As the French Open moves toward crowning a first-time women’s singles champion, the world number one will be left wondering how a tournament that seemed destined to be hers slipped away in such dramatic fashion.
The focus now shifts to recovery and reflection as Sabalenka attempts to regroup ahead of the grass-court season, hoping to turn one of the toughest defeats of her career into motivation for the challenges that lie ahead.
