By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, September 2, 2020
Belarus' long and proud US Open history sees another major chapter when fifth-seeded Aryna Sabalenka faces former No. 1 Victoria Azarenka in a marquee second-round match.
Photo credit: Carmen Mandato/USTA
The US Open bubble welcomes a Belarusian blockbuster sequel.
A most-highly anticipated US Open second-round clash pits former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka against fifth-seeded compatriot Aryna Sabalenka in a rematch of their 2019 Flushing Meadows first-rounder.
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Both Belarusians have raised title trophies this year. Sabalenka won her sixth career title in Doha in February. The 59th-ranked Azarenka collected her 21st career title—and first since 2016—winning the Western & Southern Open title in a walkover on Saturday.
It was Azarenka's second W&S title following her 2013 championship and her 20th career hard-court crown, which is third-most among active women behind only Serena Williams (47) and Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters (31 apiece).
Sabalenka is a ballistic ball striker, who hits one of the heaviest balls on the WTA Tour. The ultra-accurate Azarenka’s is highly skilled changing direction, particularly driving her lethal two-handed backhand down the line.
The rematch may be the marquee second-round showdown.
“I think it will be a great matchup,” Azarenka said after her first-round win. “Honestly, I would be really excited to have that challenge. We had a really great match last year. It was really high quality. It didn't go my way.
“I feel like this year it's a great opportunity to kind of see where my level is at versus her level. Yeah, it's going to be a great challenge. She's a great fighter. She's been showing great tennis. I'm really looking forward.”
The pair can look back on a couple of memorable US Open clashes last year that served as Belarusian bookend battles.
Clad in identical black-and-blue Nike outfits, the Belarusians staged a bruising battle inside Louis Armstrong Stadium last summer. Sabalenka scored a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory in a first-round singles comeback win over Azarenka then partnered Elise Mertens to defeat Azarenka and Ash Barty 7-5, 7-5 in the US Open doubles final.
The adrenaline rush facing Azarenka was so high in their initial meeting, Sabalenka said she was over-hitting. Now, she’ll try to block out their shared connection when they square off in the second round.
“I mean, the Belarus start from this crazy match and finish US Open with another crazy match,” Sabalenka said. “But I try not to focus against who I'm playing. Like, first time we played against them in Miami, I think, like first three games was something crazy because Elise was telling me, Just cool down a little bit. Don't overhit to her. Just breathe. “And this time, I was just trying to focus on each point and try to bring my best on the court.”
All five Belarusian women in the US Open draw—Azarenka, Sabalenka, Olga Govortsova, Vera Lapko and Aliaksandra Sasnovich—advanced to round two.
It marks the first time in the Open Era, five Belarusian players have advanced to the second round of a Slam.
If two-time Grand Slam champion Azarenka is playing like a woman recharged by career rebirth that’s because she seriously contemplated calling it quits in January and joining colleagues Caroline Wozniacki and Maria Sharapova in hanging up her racquet. This summer, the 31-year-old Azarenka has looked revitalized.
"In January, I didn't know if I was going to play at all," Azarenka revealed. "So end of January, I decided, You know what? I might try, last time, and see what happens. Yeah."
Now, the two-time US Open finalist is playing her most dynamic tennis in recent years.
A clash of compatriots can be a tense test of nerves and this one carries added pressure in that the winner is capable of making a deep run in the draw.
"It's never fun to play someone from your own country: the extra anxiety and nerves it brings is hard to quantify if you haven't felt it," ESPN analyst and coach Rennae Stubbs said.
Belarus has a long and noteworthy history in New York.
Former Belarusian No. 1 Max “The Beast” Mirnyi honed his game on Brooklyn’s hard courts before moving to Bradenton, Florida. Returning to New York City, the former doubles world No. 1 partnered Lleyton Hewitt to the 2000 US Open doubles title then paired with Mahesh Bhupathi to claim the 2002 US Open doubles crown—the same year he knocked off Roger Federer in the US Open round of 16. Mirnyi and Serena Williams won the 1998 US Open mixed doubles championship before The Beast joined forces with Azarenka to capture the 2007 US Open mixed crown.
The question is: how will Azarenka and Sabalenka, two crowd-pleasing players, respond to the pressure of another Belarusian battle with no fans on hand?
Ninth-seeded Johanna Konta, who defeated fellow Briton and sometime training partner Heather Watson 7-6(7), 6-1, in her US Open opener says playing a compatriot in a Grand Slam inevitably imposes added pressure.
“There’s more interest at home so there’s more opinions from people at home,” Konta said. “There’s always going to be rivalry between compatriots. It’s always going to be just that extra-stress even if it’s not imposed by myself or Heather and we don’t really care about that.
“There’s always going to be an element of people having more judgements and more opinions at home in a match like today.”