"I’ll come back stronger": Aryna Sabalenka stays positive after Indian Wells final loss

Aryna Sabalenka stays positive after Indian Wells despite final loss to Mirra Andreeva. After dominating the opening set, the World No. 1 couldn’t stop the teenager’s comeback, falling 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 as Andreeva claimed her second consecutive WTA 1000 title.

This marked Sabalenka’s second loss in the Tennis Garden final, having fallen to Elena Rybakina back in 2023. The 3-time Grand Slam champion has now lost two finals this year, following a painful defeat to Madison Keys at the Australian Open.

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Still, the 26-year-old was pleased with her overall performance throughout the tournament. She advanced comfortably from her opening match, delivering impressive wins over opponents like 24th seed Liudmila Samsonova (6-2, 6-3) and World No. 5 Madison Keys (6-0, 6-1), taking revenge for her Melbourne loss earlier this year.

Despite the final setback, Sabalenka found positives in her game over the two weeks in Tennis Paradise. “I took a lot from Indian Wells. I played good tennis until the final,” she said. “In the final, some things didn’t go well,” the World No. 1 added. “I’ll work on that and make sure I play a bit better in Miami than I did in my last match at Indian Wells.”

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Sabalenka also shared her fondness for the tournament, despite leaving without the trophy: “But yes, I had a great time there, every day felt like heaven. It was very sad to leave without that beautiful trophy. But it’s okay, I’ll come back stronger. And I hope that one day I can bring that beautiful trophy home," she said in Miami, before praising Mirra Andreeva.

Sabalenka now looks ahead to her Miami Open debut, where she’ll face Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova this Thursday on Centre Court. Tomova reached the second round after defeating American Caty McNally in three sets.

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For now, Sabalenka remains secure as World No. 1, holding a lead of over 2,000 points on Iga Swiatek. That ensures she’ll stay at the top of the rankings — at least until the end of April — considering Swiatek won’t have many points to gain during the clay swing after her near-perfect 2024 campaign.

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