Aryna Sabalenka’s Roland Garros campaign came to an abrupt halt on Wednesday afternoon.
Leading 6-1, 5-3, Sabalenka looked to be well on her way to a comfortable victory over 25th seed Dian Shnaider.
However, as has become customary at this year’s event, a shocking state of affairs played out on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Sabalenka went on to lose 10 consecutive games, with Shnaider eventually triumphing 1-6, 7-5, 6-0.
What’s next for Aryna Sabalenka after shock French Open exit?
Chris Evert rightly criticised Sabalenka after the match: the Belarusian struggled to deal with the blustery conditions on Roland Garros’ premier court and let her emotions get the better of her towards the end of the contest.
The world number one has since spoken to reporters in Paris, offering her first reaction to the monumental defeat.
Aryna Sabalenka says she wants to ‘quit’ tennis after defeat to Diana Shnaider in Paris
“No thoughts. No emotions. Just want to quit tennis right now,” Sabalenka said after the contest, as reported by reputable journalist Jose Morgado.
“We will see in a few days how I get back on track mentally”.
“I feel like I had a very decent chance in the second set. I screwed up and she stepped in.”
“Mentally I couldn’t recover from the second set,” the Belarusian also admitted. “I don’t know when was the last time that I lost 10 games in a row.
“Mentally I entered a very deep hole.”
Roland Garros Women’s Singles semi-finals
- Marta Kostyuk vs Mirra Andreeva
- Diana Shnaider vs Maja Chwalinska
Following Sabalenka’s loss, only one top 10 player remains in the women’s singles draw.
That player is Mirra Andreeva, who will play Marta Kostyuk for a place in the Roland Garros final on Thursday.
As for Diana Shnaider, she will play world number 114 Maja Chwalinska.
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‘I want to smash everything’
Later in the press conference, Sabalenka reflected on her mental state, admitting that she became overly emotional during the match.
“I have to step back and understand. I’m so tired of losing some matches not in the best way because I was over emotional,” the four-time major champion stated.
“I have to step back and understand. I’m so tired of losing some matches not in the best way because I was over emotional.”
“I have to openly think what’s happening in my head in those moments. I have to figure what’s not working sometimes in those moments.”
“What doesn’t kill you makes you strong. At some point I will have to figure this out.
I wanna go to one of those rooms, go in and smash everything. Probably I will spend a whole day tomorrow. Maybe it will help, maybe not.”
Sabalenka will hope to bounce back quickly and properly prepare for the grass-court swing.
The Belarusian’s first event on the grass is scheduled to be the Berlin Open, which will begin on June 13.
Sabalenka is far from the only high-profile name participating in the event: the likes of Elena Rybakina and Coco Gauff are also set to play in the German capital.
