"It's nice to achieve your goal but I still have to work hard" - Aryna Sabalenka suggests not much has changed since winning Australian Open 2023

Aryna Sabalenka is in seventh heaven after lifting her maiden Grand Slam title in Australia last month. However, she doesn't want to get complacent and states that she will continue working hard in the future.

The Belarusian star reached a Grand Slam final for the first time in her career at the 2023 Australian Open, where she defeated 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

She has been undefeated so far this season and has lost only one set. Before the Melbourne Major, the World No. 2 also won the WTA 500 Adelaide International 1.

Sabalenka is now gearing up for the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. In a pre-tournament press conference, she was asked if things had changed for her since becoming a Grand Slam champion. The 24-year-old replied:

"Well, I don't know. The world? I mean, it's definitely changed something in my mind. But not much. I still have to work hard. I still have to prove every time on the court that I'm on the right place. Nothing changed much. It's just really nice to achieve your goal. Yeah, but I still have to work, so nothing has changed much."

Sabalenka had previously lost in the semifinals of the Majors thrice. She added that the title meant a lot to her and gave her the motivation to keep performing well.

"It means a lot to me. I believed in myself, but I was waiting for so long, I was working so hard, I couldn't get it. I had tough losses in the semifinals. Then when I won, it's kind of, yeah, it means a lot. I was super happy. Now I have even more, how to say? Yeah, I want more. 'Motivation', this is the word. More motivation to work hard, just to feel it again," she added.

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"I won Australian Open because I was focusing on myself" - Aryna Sabalenka

Aryna Sabalenka won the 2023 Australian Open

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, Aryna Sabalenka stated that she won the 2023 Australian Open only because she focused on herself. This is also something that she plans to continue in the future.

"I would like to just focus on myself because I think the only thing why I won Australian Open is because I was focusing on myself," Aryna Sabalenka said. "I didn't really think about all the expectations, all the things happening around, like 'this is Grand Slam', all this stuff."

"I was just focusing on myself. I just kept telling myself that I have to bring my level on the court, I have a lot of chances to win the match. So, yeah, I'll just try focus on myself," she said.

As the second seed in Dubai, Sabalenka has received a bye in the first round and will face either Jil Teichmann or Anastasia Potapova in the second.