A Day in the Life with Aryna Sabalenka
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Aryna Sabalenka is on top of the world. "Life is amazing! Life is super beautiful," the world no. 2 tennis player says, her enthusiasm clear over the phone.
She's calling from Indian Wells, California, where she is gearing up for the 2024 Indian Wells tournament. She begins her quest for the title tomorrow (like other seeded players, she has a first round bye). "I'm so excited to be here," she tells T&C. "I love this event and have great memories from here."
Sabalenka, 25, is widely regarded as a favorite to lift the trophy. She was a finalist last year, before losing to Elena Rybakina, but the Belrusian player nicknamed "the Tiger" is firmly looking ahead. Sabalenka has good reason to be positive; she's coming off a major win Down Under, clinching the Australian Open title, and a strong 2023 season that saw her become world no. 1 for the first time in her career.
She has a number of positive takeaways from her Australian Open victory: "The way I was able to focus on my game, and separate myself from the rest of the stuff—like the pressure of being defending champion—I'll take that experience." A few years ago Sabalenka says she experienced "some difficult situations on court." "I wasn't able to play my best at all and it was a really tough period. After that period was when I came back on top, and it gave me so much power in believing in myself."
Through "all those tough moments," Sabalenka says, when her head is filled with thoughts and noise, "I'm reminding myself that, 'you've been through so many difficult situations and, you can get through anything. Just keep focusing on tennis and on stuff you can control.'" She adds, "I actually think that when you really try to block those thoughts, [they get] even worse. I'm not trying to block them, but remind myself that I'm actually good at what I'm doing! And whatever else I'm thinking myself, I'm reminding myself I'm strong enough to handle anything."
Ahead of the tournament—officially the BNP Paribas Open—Sabalenka brought T&C with her for a day in the life, and dispensed some wisdom along the way.
"I'm sick of the hotel life!" says, referencing this photo of the view from her bedroom in Palm Springs. "I'm in a house this year, definitely better than staying in a hotel, to be honest." The atmosphere of a house is better during a tournament, she says, because "it feels like a home, makes me feel relaxed."
"It wasn't very natural, I was posing here!" she says with a laugh. But making her bed when she wakes up is important to Sabalenka: "I don't like when it's a mess. I like everything to be perfect."
A snap of the welcome basket from the tournament, given to players.
Sabalenka starts her day with an açai bowl for breakfast. "Most of the time I go for Oakberry bowl; I think it's healthy and a good thing to start your day." She adds, it has "everything you [want]: protein, carbs, vitamins, fruit. It's like an energy bowl, so I feel ready to go after I have it. It's the perfect snack, or meal."
Cheers-ing açai! She loves sharing behind-the-scenes moments of her team like this one, with her followers. "I feel super connected with tennis fans," Sabalenka says. "I like to share, and I really hope that [for] people watching my stories or my posts, [it helps] them with their mood. I hope I'm helping people to feel happier."
Her typical day consists of practice on the court, fitness training and conditioning, and physiotherapy.
"I wouldn't say I love training," Sabalenka says. "I'm definitely a hard worker, and I love to work to get better. But my favortie part is definitely the end of the practice when you finished for the day and you've done a lot and you improved."
She adds, "It's a good feeling, when you've done something tough."
Her least-favorite part of training? "The warm-up. It takes too long! You prepare yourself for something tough, it makes you feel worse."
She's hesitant to discuss her goals for the year. "I don't like talking about goals and dreams because all of us—I mean, tennis players—have the same goals and dreams and no need to say that!"
But Sabalenka does share one ambition for 2024: "I just want to focus on myself, no matter what's happening. To be able to fight for every point and make sure I'm getting better as a person and as a player every day."
She's pictured here getting a post-workout massage from her trainer. Her team often features in her TikToks (@saba_a05) and on her Instagram (@sabalenka_aryna).
At Indian Wells, there's also time in the lead-up to the tournament dedicated to photoshoots. "I like doing makeup, hair," she says, and experimenting with fashion off-court, like the Nike x Jacquemus collab pictured here. "I'm in a pink-y mood!"
Sabalenka is a fan of photoshoots. "Most of the time on court, I don't look as good as I can—and I like to look good, sometimes. Look in the mirror and say, 'OK, you're not that bad!'" she says with a self-deprecating laugh.
She adds, "I'm half and half—half of the time, I don't care how I look, but half of the time, I'm like, I need to look good!"
While she's taking photos in this black Nike kit for a WTA shoot, for Indian Wells, she'll be wearing a pink dress. "Barbie!" she exclaims.
"In the evening, of course, I do my skin care routine," she says. "I feel like sometimes when you do too much with the skincare routine, it actually makes it look worse." Her skincare routine—which she refers to as a hobby—is nothing too intense, but "since I'm tour, I feel like I have to take care of my skin and hair. Or after my career I will look terrible!"
Sabalenka uses cleanser, eye cream, sometimes a moisturizing mask. "I smile a lot, so I have wrinkles," she says with a laugh. "I think it makes me look older!" Key to her regimen, Sabalenka says, is moisturizing cream. "Especially here in Indian Wells, the air is so dry and it makes your skin look so dry, so I do extra moisturizing cream."
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