Injury-Free Sabalenka Sets Sights on French Open After Limited Clay Season

Sabalenka Says she’s fully fit ahead of French Open

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Sabalenka returns to Roland Garros healthier and calmer, looking to improve on last year’s final loss to Coco Gauff and make a deeper run in 2026.

Sabalenka targets one step further at Roland Garros after 2025 final loss...

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka says she’s 100% fit and ready to compete at the French Open. She’s put behind the physical issues that disrupted her clay season, even though she arrives in Paris without reaching a semifinal on clay this year.

Injuries cast doubt over Sabalenka’s Roland Garros campaign. The Belarusian has won just four of six matches on clay in 2026, a sharp drop from her 26-1 record before the clay swing started.

Her dip included a surprise third-round loss at the Italian Open, where she cited lower back and hip pain. The 28-year-old said taking time off helped her recover and reset for Paris.

“I struggled in the beginning of the claycourt (swing) physically, but right now ‌I feel 100%,” Sabalenka told reporters on Friday.

“We ⁠did a great recovery. We focused ‌on recovery and made sure that I'm healed everywhere and I'm ready to go. Right now, physically I'm ready to go.”

Sabalenka has played only six matches on clay, but she isn’t worried about the lack of time on court. She said experience matters more than racking up matches before a Grand Slam.

“I think all of us are here just for one reason, doesn't matter if I didn't ⁠play a lot of matches on the claycourt,” Sabalenka added.

“I know how to play on clay and it's all about being physically and mentally healthy, to go for it, and to be ready to fight.”

Sabalenka used to let her emotions show on court, but she said better composure has been key to her rise to world No. 1.

“My emotions were destroying my game and my level was dropping dramatically when I would just start over-reacting on everything,” she said.

“And also, at the same time, my opponents would see that and they would step in and play better.

“First of all, making sure that my opponent doesn't see what's going on in my head, and at the same time, to perform better and to stay in the ‌zone - it was a huge improvement over the years in my career and really helped me to level up.”

Aryna Sabalenka’s possible path to the Roland Garros title:

R1 - Bouzas Maneiro

R2 - Jacquemot / Qualifier

R3 - Bucsa / Kasatkina / Sonmez

R4 - Osaka / Jovic / Eala / Vekic

QF - Pegula / Mboko / Shnaider / Keys

SF - Gauff / Anisimova / Zheng / Noskova / Mertens /… pic.twitter.com/2tRCo0fASd

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) May 21, 2026

Sabalenka is aiming to go one step further than last year, when she lost to Coco Gauff in the final after winning the first set.

With her body healed and her emotions under control, Sabalenka kept her message simple about her goals in Paris: “All I can say that I'm ready to fight. Of course, I hope to do a little bit better than I did last year.”