Aryna Sabalenka failed in her quest to win a third consecutive Australian Open title.

It wasn’t to be for the Belarussian WTA star, as she lost in three sets on Rod Laver Arena, missing out on a third title at Melbourne Park.

Sabalenka lost to Madison Keys, 3-6, 2-6, 5-7, in an enthralling encounter, as the American picked up her first Major trophy.

Photo by Jason Heidrich/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Her defeat on Saturday was Sabalenka’s second in a Grand Slam final, having lost to Coco Gauff at the US Open in 2023.

She was unsurprisingly frustrated after missing out on a third Australian Open title, with her emotions spilling over as the match concluded.

Sabalenka has now explained why she acted the way she did when Keys converted the second of her two match points to clinch the title.

After the pair embraced at the net, Sabalenka can be seen smashing her racket, while Keys celebrated at Rod Laver Arena.

Fans criticized Sabalenka for her behavior after the match, with the WTA star now revealing why she acted in the manner she did.

“Well, I mean, there definitely was a bit of frustration because I was so close to achieve something crazy,” she said.

“When you’re out there, you’re fighting, but it seems like everything going not the way you really want to go.

“I just needed to throw those negative emotions at the end just so I could give a speech, not stand there being disrespectful.

“I was just trying to let it go and be a good person, be respectful.”

The 26-year-old went on to say that she knows better than most how to deal with losses, and that she’ll be back for more in 2026.

“It’s okay, I mean, I’m the one who knows that after tough losses, there is good wins,” said Sabalenka.

“So I’ll keep working and make sure that next time, if I’ll be in this situation, I’ll play definitely better.”

When Sabalenka lost to Gauff in the 2023 US Open final, she bounced back the year after, taking down Jessica Pegula in straights to lift the title.

Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images

The Belarussian will be hoping for a similar comeback next year, when she returns to Melbourne, searching for a third title down under.

Iga Swiatek’s defeat to Madison Keys in the semi-finals ruled the Pole out of contention for the world number one ranking.

However, with Sabalenka failing to capitalize on Swiatek’s misfortune, as she herself lost to Keys, the gap is as tight as ever as the season rolls on.

RankNamePointsPoints gap to Number one1Aryna Sabalenka8,956–2Iga Swiatek8,7701863Coco Gauff6,5382,4184Jasmine Paolini5,2893,6675Elena Rybakina4,8934,0636Jessica Pegula4,8614,0957Madison Keys4,6804,2768Qinwen Zheng4,0954,8619Emma Navarro3,7095,24710Paula Badosa3,6085,348

Projected WTA top ten (27th January)

Just 186 points separate the pair, with Swiatek desperate to get back on top and add to her 125 weeks spent as world number one.

Unfortunately for the 23-year-old, she has her fair share of points to defend over the next month or so, thanks to her win in Doha last year.

Swiatek beat Elena Rybakina in the 2024 final and will drop 1,000 points ahead of this year’s tournament.

On the other side, Sabalenka had a much slower start to 2024, gifting her the chance to pick up more points this time around.

Name2024 Doha points2024 Dubai points2024 Indian Wells points2024 Miami PointsTotal pointsIga Swiatek1,0003901,0001202,510Aryna Sabalenka–1012065195

Points earned in the first four WTA 1000 tournaments in 2024

Between now and the end of March, Swiatek has to defend over 2,500 points, whereas Sabalenka is defending less than 200.

Therefore, the likelihood is that the Belarussian will extend her gap at the top unless Swiatek truly dominates at the next four WTA 1000 tournaments.

If the pair were to both underperform, it could pave the way for Gauff to reach world number one for the first time, as she looks to win a third WTA 1000 title, having won in Cincinnati and Beijing previously.

Only time will tell, whether Swiatek and Gauff will take the number one spot from Sabalenka in 2025, but it’ll certainly be interesting to see the battle unfold.

The 2025 Doha WTA 1000 event is set to begin on February, 10.

Aryna SabalenkaAustralian OpenWTA