After putting in three strong performances, Aryna Sabalenka appears to have faltered big time against Naomi Osaka in the fourth round of Wimbledon. She looked to be way out of her rhythm in the first set and was especially weak on her serve. Osaka clinched two early breaks and raced to a 5-1 lead, frustrating Sabalenka to the core. And it didn’t take long for the Belarusian to lose her temper.

Sabalenka was seen hitting her racket on her head multiple times during the set. Though she did try to break back and played some pretty close games, Osaka managed to hold and soon served out the set. Sabalenka headed off court to calm herself as the first set came to a close.

The World No. 1 looked to be in better touch in the second and didn’t have her serve broken in any of her service games. This would see the set head into a tiebreaker. But Osaka pretty much made light work of Sabalenka in the breaker.

Osaka served a lightning-fast ace to take a 2-1 lead and this would turn out to be the opening that she needed. The Japanese would then clinch the next four points as well to gain a decisive 6-1 advantage. Though Sabalenka would then win a consolatory point, Osaka went on to clinch the next one to win the breaker 7-2 and record a 6-2, 7-6 victory.

This wasn’t just Osaka’s first victory of the year over Sabalenka, but it was also her first triumph in eight years. Her previous victory over the Belarusian had come all the way back in 2018. Having defeated Osaka three times this year, Sabalenka was being considered the favorite coming into their clash at Wimbledon. But Osaka continued her stunning campaign at the SW19 and she definitely has to be considered as one of the contenders for the title.

The result brought an end to Sabalenka’s streak of reaching 14 consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinals. It was also her first straight-set defeat at at a Grand Slam since the 2020 US Open. After an average clay swing, the grass-court season hasn’t turned out to be any better for Sabalenka.

Having previously gotten knocked out by Jessica Pegula in the semifinals of the Berlin Open, the World No. 1 will end the grass swing with no titles to show. The defeat to Osaka will also be a major blow to Sabalenka on the rankings. Having reached the semifinals of the SW19 last year, her fourth-round exit means that she will be losing 540 points on the rankings.

This will likely cut down the deficit between Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina at the top to just 407 points. With the latter having already exited Wimbledon in the third round, she will not be able to challenge for the No. 1 spot on this occasion. But it is safe to say that Sabalenka’s ranking is clearly in jeopardy heading into the hard-court season.

It was clear that Sabalenka was devastated with the defeat to Osaka. A fourth-round elimination from Wimbledon is the last thing that she needed before the hard swing. She had quite the answer in store when asked if she feels like the World No. 1 after being knocked out by Osaka.

Aryna Sabalenka wants to “forget” about tennis after the defeat to Naomi Osaka

“Ah, this question guys,” she said during the post-match press conference. “Let’s just look at the rankings. By now I am World No. 1. Level-wise today I wasn’t World No. 1. Yesterday I was World No. 1. I feel like I just, I don’t even want to think about ranking at this point. I just want to go get completely drunk, forget about tennis, and try to get in better shape.”

With that, Sabalenka’s wait for a maiden Wimbledon title continues. She hasn’t won a Grand Slam this season so far and will be aiming to be at the top of her game as the hard-court season commences later this month.

On the other hand, Osaka will be overjoyed with the result. Not only has she defeated her nemesis, but has also secured a first-ever quarterfinal berth at Wimbledon. Having not dropped a single set in the tournament so far, she has definitely been among the most dominant players in the women’s singles draw.

The World No. 14 will be taking on Karolina Muchova next at the SW19. The two had recently met in the final of the Bad Homburg Open, but their clash had remained incomplete as Osaka had to retire mid-way due to injury concerns.

This led Muchova to win 6-1, 1-0 and clinch her maiden title on grass. It remains to be seen whether Osaka will be able to breeze past another opponent or if her stunning run will come to an end in the Last 8.