Aryna Sabalenka made some candid admissions following her dramatic defeat against Diana Shnaider in the quarterfinals of the 2026 French Open. The world No. 1 appeared to be cruising toward the final four but lost her composure and fell to a 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 defeat.
Distraught Aryna Sabalenka Reveals How She Plans To Heal
Sabalenka appeared visibly distraught both during and after her heartbreaking loss to Shnaider. She also made a remarkable confession about her tennis future in the aftermath of the defeat. The 28-year-old said she wanted to quit tennis after the demoralizing defeat but hoped to find her motivation in the coming days.
“Just want to quit tennis right now. But we’ll see in a few days. Hopefully, I’ll get back on track mentally,” Sabalenka said during her post-match press conference.
She touched on the mental block that proved to be her undoing. “I don’t know when was the last time that happened to me that I lost ten games in a row. I don’t know; I guess mentally I got into a very deep, deep, dark hole over there, and I just couldn’t get back mentally on track.”
Sabalenka also admitted that she would be going to a Rage Room in the coming days to try and get rid of her anger and frustration. “You know those rooms where you just go in and smash everything? Probably I’ll spend a whole day tomorrow over there destroying stuff,” she added. “Maybe it’ll help; maybe not.”
The quarterfinal exit at Stade Roland-Garros marked a disappointing end to an underwhelming clay-court campaign for the world No. 1.
Sabalenka, who was beaten by Coco Gauff in last year’s French Open final, had been dominating proceedings in Paris prior to her collapse against Shnaider. She managed to avoid an early exit at what has been a Grand Slam full of upsets and was the overwhelming favorite to finally clinch her maiden title in Paris.
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However, mental lapses against Shnaider proved costly for Sabalenka, as she gave up a promising position in the quarterfinals. The Russian won 12 of the last 13 games and booked her spot in the semifinals of a Grand Slam for the first time in her career. Shnaider also handed Sabalenka her first bagel since February 2024 by winning the third set 6-0.
It remains to be seen what comes next after this devastating loss for Sabalenka. She is already a four-time Grand Slam champion and has dominated women’s tennis over the last couple of years. However, the last two months have shown that there are chinks in her armor, which many players have been able to exploit.
