Aryna Sabalenka will enter the French Open with a 4-2 record on clay so far this year.
The Belarusian suffered a shock defeat in Madrid when Sabalenka lost to Hailey Baptiste in the quarter-finals.
Unable to bounce back in Rome, Sabalenka was beaten by Sorana Cirstea in the third round.
Is Aryna Sabalenka playing well enough to win the French Open?
She's 4-2 on clay this year…
Having watched both matches, Emma Raducanu’s former coach, Mark Petchey, has identified a mistake Sabalenka keeps making on clay.
Mark Petchey says Aryna Sabalenka comes to the net too often on clay
During the latest episode of ‘The Big T Podcast‘, Andrea Petkovic shared an interesting theory about the world number one.
“Iga Swiatek, when she lost that match against Madison Keys last year at the Australian Open. It was the first time in a recorded match she had lost a match with a match point, ever, in her life,” said Petkovic.
“And after that, she struggled until Wimbledon, which was the first big tournament she won.
Iga Swiatek’s results after losing to Madison Keys last year
- Australian Open – Lost to Madison Keys in SF
- Qatar Open – Lost to Jelena Ostapenko in SF
- Dubai Tennis Championships – Lost to Mirra Andreeva in QF
- Indian Wells – Lost to Mirra Andreeva in SF
- Miami Open – Lost to Alex Eala in QF
- Stuttgart Open – Lost to Jelena Ostapenko in QF
- Madrid Open – Lost to Coco Gauff in SF
- Italian Open – Lost to Danielle Collins in 3R
- French Open – Lost to Aryna Sabalenka in SF
- Bad Homburg Open – Lost to Jessica Pegula in F
- Wimbledon – Champion
“Everybody was already talking about an Iga Swiatek crisis.
“Is the same to be expected for Aryna Sabalenka?
“These champions, who are not used to losing with match points. Six match points on top of that, against a player she expected to beat.”
Sabalenka failed to convert any of the six match points she had against Baptiste in Madrid.
Petchey doesn’t believe Sabalenka will be affected by her defeat to Baptiste, but did highlight a key issue with her clay-court game.
“I think that it’s not going to affect her heading into Roland Garros. Whether there is some brittleness just because she’s lost again, whether that is more the concern, rather than that she lost that match against Hailey,” said Petchey.
“I think Madrid, because it’s at altitude, you can kind of brush it off to some degree, it’s not the end of the world.
“In some respects, given the amount she played and how successful she was through Miami and Indian Wells, she is going to go into Roland Garros very fresh, and I think these great champions have the ability at the majors to build confidence, build form, and I don’t think it’s necessarily going to hurt her.
Aryna Sabalenka’s 2026 record
| Tournament | Performance | Matches played |
| Brisbane International | Champion | 5 |
| Australian Open | Runner-up | 7 |
| Indian Wells | Champion | 6 |
| Miami Open | Champion | 6 |
| Madrid Open | Quarter-final | 4 |
| Italian Open | Third round | 2 |
“I do think watching her on clay, at times, she’s trying to come in a little too much.
“That’s obviously been a big part of Max [Mirnyi] coming on board, and trying to get her to come in.
“Then, trying to figure out that actually, no, this part of the season, I’m not going to do that.
“It’s so difficult to defend on this surface these days with the ball moving at the speed that it is.
“That would be my only piece of advice: don’t leave yourself so exposed at the net.
Sabalenka would be wise to take on Petchey’s advice as she prepares for another assault on the Roland Garros title.
Aryna Sabalenka’s French Open record
The world number one made her French Open debut in 2017, where she lost in the first round of qualifying.
Sabalenka failed to make much of an impression in Paris until 2023.
There, she reached the semi-finals, narrowly losing out to Karolina Muchova in a three-set thriller.
Aryna Sabalenka’s French Open results
- 2017 – Lost in Q1 to Ipek Soylu, 6-4, 1-6, 6-7
- 2018 – Lost in 1R to Kiki Bertens, 2-6, 1-6
- 2019 – Lost in 2R to Amanda Anisimova, 4-6, 2-6
- 2020 – Lost in 3R to Ons Jabeur, 6-7, 6-2, 3-6
- 2021 – Lost in 3R to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 4-6, 6-2, 0-6
- 2022 – Lost in 3R to Camila Giorgi, 6-4, 1-6, 0-6
- 2023 – Lost in SF to Karolina Muchova, 6-7, 7-6, 5-7
- 2024 – Lost in QF to Mirra Andreeva, 7-6, 4-6, 4-6
- 2025 – Lost in F to Coco Gauff, 7-6, 2-6, 4-6
She lost a round earlier in 2024, before qualifying for her first final, in 2025.
Sabalenka was a set away from winning the title last year, coming up just short against Coco Gauff.
Whether she can go one step further in 2026 remains to be seen.
This year’s French Open begins on Sunday, May 24.
