At the end, Aryna Sabalenka turned to her team and made a great show of kissing her formidable biceps muscle. It was an inside joke from the woman who has evolved from an all-or-nothing power player to a polished and nearly complete athlete at the very top of her game.
On Sunday at the Brisbane International, Sabalenka was a tidy 6-4, 6-3 winner in the championship match against Marta Kostyuk, who bears an uncanny resemblance to that younger Sabalenka.
Throughout the week, Sabalenka displayed flashes of finesse.
“I’m happy you saw that,” Sabalenka said. “This is something I have been working for probably my whole life, but never really worked well for me. And then a couple years ago, I finally found the touch game. I figured [out] something, and I kind of changed my game style.
“Now I’m not only the aggressive player. I can play at the net, I can be in the defense, I can use my slice, I have a good touch … to have that variety in my game, to have A, B, C plans for the match. And I’m super happy to see that things are clicking together.”
It all adds up to the No.1 player on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz and the favorite at the Australian Open, which begins a week from Sunday on Jan. 18. Sabalenka, who has won two of the past three titles, seeks to reach her fourth straight final.
She’d be contemplating a fourth straight title if she’d gotten past Madison Keys in last year’s final. The way she handled Keys in the Brisbane quarterfinals (6-3, 6-3) suggests she’ll be carrying that mishit on her shoulders heading into Melbourne.
Australia has always been the ultimate test that reveals who did their heavy-lifting homework during the offseason. Victoria Azarenka has always come out of the box fast and won back-to-back titles in 2012 and 2013. Andre Agassi won four Aussie crowns, equaling his take at the other three Slams combined.
Sabalenka said she didn’t pick up a racquet for the two weeks she vacationed after the WTA Finals and came back six kilos heavier. In Brisbane, the work in the gym was evident. Sabalenka has now won an extraordinary 38 of her 40 matches Down Under over the past three-plus years.
“Yes,” she said, “that’s really ridiculous. I think maybe because I’m not really focusing on the stats, I’m focused on myself, developing myself as a player. Being brave by trying new things.
“I just think I have the right focus and I have my team to bring me back to the right things. I think that’s been working really well for us.”
More from our conversation with the World No. 1:
Nicely done, Aryna, 6-4, 6-3 … What do you think was the difference tonight against Marta?
I worked really, really hard during the preseason and I think I added some things to my game that were working really well today. That put much more pressure back on her and I feel like she couldn’t deal with that pressure today.
What specific things have you added?
I think I had a lot of touch in my game. I became much better at the net, which is an extra pressure for the opponent. Also my baseline game is stronger. I feel like physically I’m much stronger than last year.
Five matches, the minimum of 10 sets against tough opponents … how does that set you up for Melbourne?
[Laughing]. Yeah, I’m super happy. I played some really tough matches here. It’s great tennis, great level head to the AO. Yeah, can’t complain. I think I played really great here in Brisbane.
Trying new things. Will we see more of that this year?
I hope so. I thought we’d see more of that last year, but couldn’t manage it. But we worked really hard during preseason on that part of the game. Hopefully, we’ll see that more often because I feel like it’s going to increase the level — and the pressure on my opponents.
You’ve been to three straight AO finals … can you see yourself reaching a fourth straight?
Well, we cannot see that, we cannot see the future, right? We cannot predict, especially in tennis. But I definitely feel stronger than ever. What I can promise is that I’ll be there, I’ll be fighting and doing my best to do a little bit better than last year. We’ll see, we’ll see at the end of the Australian Open if that’s possible or not.
You’ve been No. 1 for more than a year now … some players stress with that pressure … you almost seem to enjoy it … what is it about your personality that allows you to do that?
Yeah, you’re right. I’m really enjoying that. I don’t know … I think I’m really competitive and I always remind myself when I’m under pressure that this is something I’ve been dreaming of since a very young age. And that really helps me a lot in those under-pressure moments. That pushes me to work hard and do better. I just have so much love for this sport and also seeing kids being inspired by me, that’s something that keeps me going.
There’s more and more depth in the women’s game … what are your personal goals and expectations for 2026?
That’s the thing, I never have goals and expectations. Because I feel we all have similar goals, right? My main goal is to keep working, keep improving myself as a player and a person. And see how far I can get.