Aryna Sabalenka’s hopes of finally winning a maiden French Open title ended in dramatic fashion after the world number one suffered a stunning quarter-final defeat to Diana Shnaider in Paris.
The Belarusian appeared to be cruising towards the last four when she led 6-3, 4-1 on Court Philippe-Chatrier. Instead, she suffered a remarkable collapse as Russia’s Shnaider stormed back to claim a 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 victory and one of the biggest wins of her career.
For Sabalenka, the defeat represented another painful missed opportunity in a tournament where she had been widely considered the overwhelming favourite. With no other Grand Slam champions remaining in the women’s draw, many expected the 28-year-old to finally add the Roland Garros crown to her growing collection.
Instead, she was left reflecting on another major setback.
Sabalenka has established herself as the dominant force in women’s tennis over the last two years. The Belarusian has spent 93 weeks as world number one, won 11 WTA titles during that period and consistently reached the latter stages of major tournaments.
Despite that dominance, questions continue to surround her record in Grand Slam events. While four major titles would be the dream of most players, many believe Sabalenka should have achieved even more given her status as the best player in the world.
Her consistency at Grand Slams remains unmatched. She has not failed to reach at least the quarter-finals of a major since the start of the 2023 season. However, converting those opportunities into titles has often proved more difficult.
Sabalenka admitted after the defeat that her desire to win in Paris may have contributed to her downfall.
“Maybe I’m focusing too much that I’ve never won a Slam here,” she said. “Maybe it makes me overthink and over-emotional.”
The windy conditions on Chatrier proved challenging throughout the match, but Sabalenka struggled to adapt. Her aggressive baseline style, which relies heavily on first-strike tennis and powerful groundstrokes, became increasingly ineffective as the conditions worsened.
Statistics highlighted the problem. Sabalenka finished with 46 winners but was undone by 57 unforced errors as Shnaider gradually gained confidence and control.
The collapse was particularly surprising given how comfortable Sabalenka looked early in the contest. After taking the first set and building a double-break advantage in the second, she won just one of the final 13 games.
The defeat continues a frustrating trend for the world number one. She squandered six match points in Madrid earlier this season and also surrendered a strong position in Rome before arriving in Paris.
Sabalenka now turns her attention to Wimbledon, where she has reached the semi-finals in each of her last three appearances. The grass-court season offers another opportunity to put this disappointment behind her and chase a fifth Grand Slam title.
For now, though, the French Open trophy remains out of reach, and Sabalenka is left wondering how another golden opportunity slipped away.
