There will be a new Grand Slam champion at Roland Garros.
Aryna Sabalenka, the overwhelming favourite to win her fifth Grand Slam title in Paris, was defeated by a ‘speechless’ Diana Shnaider in the French Open quarter-finals.
Sabalenka looked to be in full control of the contest at 6-1, 5-3, before suffering an historic collapse.
What’s next for Aryna Sabalenka after shock French Open exit?
The Belarusian lost 10 consecutive games against Shnaider, losing 6-1, 5-7, 0-6 on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Sabalenka struggled to deal with the windy conditions throughout Wednesday’s contest.
However, this factor cannot be used as an excuse for her incredibly poor performance in Paris.
Aryna Sabalenka must improve her decision-making in windy conditions
Aryna Sabalenka’s decision-making during Wednesday’s contest was extremely poor.
Amid blustery conditions inside Court Philippe Chatrier, one would have expected the four-time major champion to take a little less risk and play with a larger margin of error.
However, she did the complete opposite.
Sabalenka continued to go for big, powerful shots; and this decision largely contributed to the staggering number of unforced errors she hit during the contest and her eventual defeat.
Remarkably, Sabalenka struck 57 unforced errors during Wednesday’s match – 30 more than Diana Shnaider.
| Statistic | Sabalenka | Shnaider |
| Aces | 2 | 1 |
| Double faults | 3 | 1 |
| First serve % | 72 | 75 |
| First serve points won [%] | 57 | 55 |
| Second serve points won [%] | 35 | 68 |
| Winners | 46 | 25 |
| Unforced errors | 57 | 27 |
Simply put, Sabalenka once again struggled to compose herself in windy conditions and employed a poor tactical game plan.
A similar situation occurred last year during Sabalenka’s French Open final defeat to Coco Gauff.
Sabalenka became frustrated by the windy conditions during the 2025 final, hitting 70 unforced errors on her way to a three-set defeat.
What next for Aryna Sabalenka?
Sabalenka will now shift her attention towards the grass-court swing.
The Belarusian is set to begin her grass campaign at the Berlin Open, which is scheduled to begin on June 13.
Sabalenka is one of many high-profile names set to compete at the event. Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina, Mirra Andreeva and Jessica Pegula are all set to compete for the title.
Sabalenka will be hoping to improve upon her 2025 performance at the event, when she lost in the semi-finals to 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova.
Following Sabalenka’s participation in the German capital, Sabalenka will travel west to London for Wimbledon.
The 28-year-old reached the semi-finals of last year’s event, before losing to Amanda Anisimova.
