Aryna Sabalenka has not been in action since she was dumped out of the Wimbledon round of 16 by Naomi Osaka, but she will return in Toronto for the Canadian Open.
The world No 1 has not had a vintage year so far in 2026, due to her inability to claim a Grand Slam title.
She has, however, still won three WTA Tour singles titles, including the Sunshine Double of Indian Wells and the Miami Open.
She is set to return at Masters level at the Canadian Open, a tournament she is yet to win in her career.
Ahead of her return to action at the North American hardcourt event, Sabalenka has lobbied for a change to the way players have to conduct their media.
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Taking to social media just days before her first round match at the Canadian Open against Moyuka Uchijima, Sabalenka said: “How about pre-tournament media to be changed? Top 10 players together for press conference? F1 style? Fun no?”
This is a ploy that has been experimented over the years, most famously at the ATP Finals, with the top eight players in the world all sit down at the desk to take questions.
However, Sabalenka’s latest idea has already been dismissed by reputable tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg.
Responding to Sabalenka’s initial post, Rothenberg said: “[I] would be game to try it somewhere but in my experience with that style some of the people up there will spend long stretches of time up on the podium without getting asked anything, and it becomes a big waste of their time.”
In a later post, Gill Gross also stated it could have a damaging impact on the content of press conferences.
“[It] would be fun as a changeup, but my hunch is the players would say absolutely nothing vulnerable or insightful in each others presence.
“There’s already culture of guardedness in the locker room and this would expose it even further. Plus, individuals would field less questions total.”
Sabalenka’s latest plea does not appear to have been taken up by any other players either, so the world No 1 could have her work cut out for her trying to push this over the line.
In the meantime, Sabalenka will be looking to turn around her form at the Canadian Open.
In her six appearances at the Masters event, the star has only reached the semi finals on one occasion. She has also reached the quarter finals, but outside of that she’s suffered a variety of early exits in Canada.
She has a 9-6 record at the Canadian Open, which equates to a 60% win rate, which makes it her second-worst performing Masters event behind only the Dubai Tennis Championships.
The post Aryna Sabalenka calls for major tennis change ahead of Canadian Open return appeared first on Tennis365.
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