Aryna Sabalenka claims Wuhan 'feels like home' after third title win

October 13, 2024

Tennis News, Tennis Tournaments, WTA Tennis Players

Aryna Sabalenka claims Wuhan ‘feels like home’ after winning third consecutive title

Aryna Sabalenka has won the Wuhan Open title for a third consecutive year, becoming only the second player in history to achieve this feat at a WTA 1000 tournament.

Sabalenka beat home favourite Qinwen Zheng, 6-3 5-7 6-3, in a rematch of the Australian Open final earlier today.

This was the Belarusian’s 17th consecutive victory in Wuhan, as she becomes the second player in history to win a single WTA 1000 tournament on three consecutive occasions, joining Serena Williams at the Miami Open (2013-2015).

Despite Zheng having the majority of the support from the Chinese crowd, Sabalenka revealed after the match that the Wuhan tournament makes her feel like she is at home.

“That sounds crazy [winning three titles], this place definitely feels like home,” said Sabalenka. “Thank you guys for coming and bringing an amazing atmosphere tonight.

“Even though you were supporting her, I really enjoyed playing in front of you. I got a lot of support throughout the tournament, so thank you so much. It is always an amazing atmosphere on and off the court.”

The three-time major winner added, “I will definitely come back even stronger than this year and I will do my best to keep hold of this beautiful trophy in this beautiful place. I will do my best to come back as strong as possible.”

2 – Aryna Sabalenka is the second player after Serena Williams at Miami (2013 to 2015) to win a WTA-1000 tournament in three consecutive editions of the tournament. Own. #wuhanopen | @wuhanopentennis @WTA @WTA_insider pic.twitter.com/p5pBEuRJkY
— OptaAce (@OptaAce) October 13, 2024

As a result of winning the US Open, and WTA 1000 titles in Cincinnati and now Wuhan, Sabalenka has closed the gap on World No.1 Iga Swiatek to just 69 points.

Both players just have one tournament remaining this season at the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where Sabalenka has just 625 points to defend compared to Swiatek’s 1500 as defending champion.

Inside the baseline…

Aryna Sabalenka and Wuhan just seem to go together perfectly, especially considering that the last time this event was held was back in 2019. However, it was not all plain-sailing for Sabalenka this year, having been 6-1 4-2 down against Coco Gauff in the semi-final and having to really fightback to keep herself alive. It almost seems inevitable that Sabalenka is going to end this season as World No.1, and based off recent months it feels about right.