WIMBLEDON, England — While her athleticism is, at times, breathtaking, consistency has never been Sabalenka’s calling card. Until this year.
Heading into her second-round match against Varvara Gracheva, Sabalenka had won 13 of 14 major matches — and 10 straight in the second round of majors.
While the 22-year-old Gracheva is unquestionably a rising force in the game, Sabalenka was an overwhelming favorite to advance to the third round. And yet, it was Gracheva, serving at 5-4 in the second set, who was within a game of the tournament’s biggest upset of the first week on either side.
Wimbledon: Scores | Draws | Order of play
There were flashes of the old Sabalenka — slumping shoulders, double faults and animated conversations with her box — but she rallied Friday to defeat Gracheva 2-6, 7-5, 6-2. Sabalenka won nine of the last 11 games, another example of her growing maturity.
With that, make that 14-1 in majors, better than Iga Swiatek (13-1) and No.3 Elena Rybakina (10-2). After starting her career 2-4 in second-round matches at the Slams, Sabalenka is now 11-0.
At the age of 25, Sabalenka has settled into herself, and the results, now routine, have been memorable. Back at the Australian Open in January, the No.2-seeded Sabalenka won her first Grand Slam singles title and last month advanced to the semifinals of Roland Garros.
Watching her press interviews, seeing her move around the grounds here, there is an unabashed sense of joy about Sabalenka. That’s because a year ago, she wasn’t allowed to compete when the All England Club banned Belarusian and Russian players because of the conflict with Ukraine.
Day 5: Wimbledon
“I really love Wimbledon,” Sabalenka told reporters after her first-round win over Panna Udvardy. “It was really tough period for me last year. I was just super happy to be here this year. Since then I really enjoyed every second today on court, enjoyed the atmosphere. I think I actually didn’t realize how much I missed Wimbledon last year till today’s match.
“I have great memories from two years ago. I made semifinals.”
She made another one in the first round with a tweener that went viral. She crashed the net when Udvardy only got a small piece of a big serve, but then raced back when the Hungarian threw up a lob. At nearly full speed, five feet past the baseline, back to the net and lifting her left leg, Sabalenka stroked a shot that Udvardy only got back in play…