Aryna Sabalenka reveals the biggest lesson she learned in 2025 which helped her win the US Open

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Aryna Sabalenka finished 2025 as the world number one on the WTA Tour.

After coming close at the Australian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon, Sabalenka finally added to her major tally at the US Open.

The Belarusian star defeated Amanda Anisimova in the final to win her fourth Grand Slam.

She certainly didn’t have things all her own way in 2025, as Sabalenka was made to work hard for her major triumph.

During an interview with ESPN Brazil, she shared the biggest lesson she learned this year.

Aryna Sabalenka learned that reaching the final doesn’t guarantee a title

Sabalenka learned a very ‘obvious’ lesson this year, after losing five finals in 2025.

“I learnt that if you make the final, it does not mean that you are going to win the tournament,” she said.

“It’s obvious! It’s not very smart to say because it is so obvious.

“Yeah, you are in the finals, but it does not mean that you are going to win the tournament.

Aryna Sabalenka’s record in 2025 WTA Finals

“But every time I would make the finals at the beginning of the season, I would think, things are going my way.

“I am going to win the title, but then I was losing a lot of finals because my expectations were too high and the pressure was too high when things were not going well.”

Learning her lesson, Sabalenka won her third Grand Slam final of the year in New York.

“So I think I have learned how to still go into the final hungry without knowing what is going to happen and finding my way through tough challenges each time,” she said.

“I think that is why I was able to lift the US Open trophy, because my mentality was slightly different from the first two finals of the Grand Slams.”

Whether she can take those lessons forward with her into 2026 is another story…

How many Grand Slams will Aryna Sabalenka win next year?

Sabalenka will travel to all four Grand Slams in 2026 as one of the favorites, having performed as well as she has at the majors over recent years.

Across the past three seasons, Sabalenka has failed to reach the semifinals of a Grand Slam just once, and even then, she qualified for the quarterfinals.

Aryna Sabalenka at Grand Slams (2023-2025)

• 2023 Australian Open – WINNER
• 2023 French Open – Semifinalist
• 2023 Wimbledon – Semifinalist
• 2023 US Open – Finalist
• 2024 Australian Open – WINNER
• 2024 French Open – Quarterfinalist
• 2024 US Open – WINNER
• 2025 Australian Open – Finalist
• 2025 French Open – Finalist
• 2025 Wimbledon – Semifinalist
• 2025 US Open – WINNER

She will certainly head to Melbourne as the favorite, looking to avenge her defeat to Madison Keys in this year’s final.

Then at the French Open, Sabalenka will want to go one better than she did in 2025 and win her first title at the event.

There will be similar discussions when she arrives at SW19, as Sabalenka has yet to win the Venus Rosewater dish, despite being arguably the best grass court player alive.

Finally, she will have an opportunity to retain her US Open title once more and add to her wins in 2024 and 2025.

It’s tough to imagine Sabalenka winning all four, but it wouldn’t come as too much of a surprise to see her win multiple majors next year.

If she can, she will close the gap to her rival, Iga Swiatek, in the list of ‘active’ Grand Slam winners on the WTA Tour.

Most Grand Slams among ‘active’ WTA players

Only time will tell if Sabalenka can win any more Grand Slams in 2026, but you certainly won’t want to miss any of the action.

She’ll have her first shot at Grand Slam number five at the Australian Open, which begins on Sunday, January 18.