"It’s interesting even to think how late she actually managed to fall asleep" - Dementieva cites 'fatigue' as the reason why Sabalenka failed to lift WTA Trophy

Former world number three Elena Dementieva believed that Aryna Sabalenka lacked 'freshness' in the WTA Finals final defeat to Elena Rybakina, citing tiredness as the key factor in her final failure.

A lot of tennis was played before the final. Ahead of it, Sabalenka had won every match so far in the event, just like Rybakina. However, this may have taken a toll on her body when reaching the final. This does not even include the prolonged season the tennis players had to play in.

"You know, it seemed to me that she lacked a little freshness in the final. We talked about the fact that Elena had difficult opponents — but Aryna Sabalenka had no less difficult ones," Dementieva said. "As it seems to me, Elena was a little unlucky with the schedule because it turned out she played three matches in a row. The problem wasn’t her opponents — we know her well. As soon as she faces a stronger opponent or a more difficult situation, she usually plays even better."

Late finish impacted Sabalenka

It was a very late semi-final finish for Sabalenka. Her three-set clash against Amanda Anisimova did not climax until around 11:30pm local time. This would have impacted her time for recovery and give Rybakina the slim advantage with her match finishing before the Belarusian stepped onto the court.

"As you know, players don’t just finish after the match. There’s still the press conference, communication with journalists, warm-down, stretching, recovery procedures… and you still need to eat, calm down, and fall asleep — which is hard when you’re in such an overexcited state," Dementieva stated. "It’s interesting even to think how late she actually managed to fall asleep, and how much rest she really got. These little nuances all make a difference. In the final, she seemed a little slower than usual. It affected her speed of decision-making — and the decisions themselves."

Sabalenka different from other players

The Russian compared Sabalenka to Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova - some great company for the current world number one to find herself in. The reason for this because of her ability to turn a match on its head with some supreme tennis.

"Her distinctive quality — and I want to say I’ve only seen this in two other tennis players on tour, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova — is that no matter how they’re playing, no matter what form they’re in, as soon as they feel the match slipping away, when the decisive moment comes, they somehow find these secret reserves," Dementieva said.

Aryna Sabalenka will once again finish the calendar year as world number one

"They have this instant ability to mobilise. Suddenly, they start to play many times better. It’s as if it’s not just a tennis match anymore — not just hitting the ball over the net — but a matter of life and death. They fight fiercely. Aryna has that same quality."

She took examples from the event in Riyadh. "We saw it in her matches — with Coco Gauff, when she lost the first set, and against Anisimova in the semifinals. And here again — when she had a chance at 5–4 in the second set, leading with a double set point — Elena gave her a real gift by missing both first serves. But Aryna couldn’t switch on in that moment. She couldn’t take advantage. I think that was due to fatigue."

Tiredness cost Sabalenka her maiden WTA Finals triumph

When asked if tiredness was the biggest factor for her damaging defeat, the former WTA Finals winner said: "Yes, I think so — and also her excessive desire. She kept saying how much she wanted to win. She had been preparing specifically for this, even skipping some tournaments on purpose.

This could have been very different, with Rybakina almost not qualifying for the event. "And what did Elena say at the award ceremony? She said, 'I’m glad I got here. I didn’t expect to go so far.' If Mirra [Andreeva] had come to Tokyo and played even one match, it’s possible Elena wouldn’t have qualified for this tournament at all."

Dementieva finished off the segment by praising Rybakina on what was a scintillating display enroute to a statement title. "Of course, she had a strong desire to win — but not an excessive one. That’s why she played calmly, cold-bloodedly, and just showed the highest level of skill. It was, in my opinion, a brilliant victory," she concluded.

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