Full reaction to Aryna Sabalenka Winning 2024 Australian Open | Tennis Channel Live

I’M SUPER HAPPY THAT I WAS ABLE TO GET THIS WIN TODAY. >> ABSOLUTELY DOMINATING FROM THE START OF THE TOURNAMENT. ALL THE WAY TO THE FINISH. HOW WOULD YOU COMPARE THIS TWO YEARS TITLE TO THE ONE SHE WON LAST YEAR? WELL I MEAN LAST YEAR YOUR FIRST TIME IS ALWAYS YOUR FIRST TIME TO BE ABLE TO COME BACK AND DO IT. HAVING KNOWN WHAT IT TAKES TO GET THERE, IT’S ALMOST A LITTLE BIT MORE CHALLENGING IN MANY ASPECTS. EVERYONE SORT OF GUNNING FOR YOU. YOU’VE HAD SUCH A PHENOMENAL YEAR LAST YEAR, SO YOU’VE GOT TO

BE ABLE TO BACK IT UP. EXPECTATIONS CAN KILL YOU, BUT I THINK SHE MADE IT VERY SIMPLE ON HERSELF. SHE STUCK TO HER GUNS. YOU SEE ALL HER BALLS, EVEN HER ERRORS AND HER WINNERS NOT GOING TOO FAR CLOSE TO THE LINE, PICKING BIG TARGETS. I THINK SHE PLAYED REALLY SMART TENNIS WITHIN HER BIG POWER GAME MATCH BEFORE THIS TOURNAMENT. >> SHE WON THREE GAMES. >> BLOWN OFF THE COURT BY RYBAKINA, NO MOMENTUM AND THEN SHE COMES INTO THIS EVENT AS DEFENDING CHAMPION. >> WHAT DOES SHE DO? SHE ABSOLUTELY RUNS THROUGH THIS DRAW. YOU CAN

LOOK AT WHAT SHE DIDN’T LOSE A SET. ONLY THE FIFTH WOMAN TO DO THAT. CONGRATS TO LD. BACK TO BACK TITLES. THE FIRST PLAYER SINCE AZARENKA. I THINK THERE’S SOMETHING INSTRUCTIVE HERE. IF WE HAD HAD A DISCUSSION ABOUT SABALENKA

13 MONTHS AGO, WHAT WOULD WE SAY? BIT OF A CHAOS MERCHANT. SHE’S GOT THE YIPS ON HER SERVE. SHE GRUNTS. SHE’S GOT, YOU KNOW, SHE’S SO EMOTIONAL. >> SHE HAS REALLY CHANGED HER CAREER. >> AND I THINK THERE ARE A LOT OF PLAYERS COULD DO VERY WELL TO LOOK AT HER AND SAY, YOU KNOW WHAT, I

CAN CHANGE MY RESULTS. I CAN CHANGE MY REPUTATION. >> SHE WAS SO COMPOSED FOR TWO WHOLE WEEKS. >> THAT IS NOT A CONVERSATION WE WOULD HAVE BEEN HAVING JUST TWO YEARS AGO. >> YEAH, WE WERE CURIOUS IF SHE WAS GOING TO BE ABLE TO KEEP IT TOGETHER IN THIS ENTIRE TOURNAMENT AND YOU GO BACK. YES. SHE WON THE AUSTRALIAN OPEN SEMIFINALS OF ROLAND GARROS LAST YEAR, UP FIVE TWO IN THE THIRD MATCH, POINT COLLAPSED AGAINST MUCHOVA UP A SET AND A BREAK. SEMIFINALS OF WIMBLEDON LOST TO JABEUR, THEN WE SAW HER IN THAT FINAL AGAINST

COCO GAUFF. REALLY GET RATTLED BY THE CROWD. I WAS EXPECTING THAT POSSIBLY AGAINST GAUFF, WHO WAS REALLY CHALLENGING HER LATE IN THAT FIRST SET, BUT SOMETHING WAS DIFFERENT ABOUT SABALENKA HERE, WHETHER IT WAS THE CONFIDENCE FROM WINNING HERE LAST YEAR OR JUST A NEW MINDSET COMING OFF THE OFF SEASON WHERE, YOU KNOW, SHE WORKED SO INCREDIBLY HARD. I MEAN, SHE WAS READY EMOTIONALLY. SHE THE BEST I’VE EVER SEEN HER. SHE WAS BUTTONED UP. SHE WAS READY FOR THE PRESSURE MOMENTS WHEN THEY DID OCCUR. AND SHE DIDN’T HAVE TO HAVE MANY OF THEM BECAUSE SHE WAS

PLAYING SO WELL. >> SHE REALLY DIDN’T. I KNOW IGA’S NUMBER ONE IN THE WORLD RIGHT NOW, BUT ARYNA SABALENKA, THE ONLY PLAYER TO HAVE MADE SIX STRAIGHT GRAND SLAM SEMIFINALS, THREE FINALS, NOW TWO TITLES. AND AS WE LOOK AT HER ROAD TO THIS CHAMPIONSHIP, LINDSAY, THERE WERE NO ROADBLOCKS. I MEAN, LISTEN, COCO GAUFF YES, MADE IT CHALLENGING IN THE SEMIS, BUT STILL COULDN’T TAKE A SET OFF HER. >> NO. GAUFF CAME THE CLOSEST SIX 530 LOVE SERVING. BUT THAT’S RIGHT. WHEN SABALENKA WAS ABLE TO KICK IT BACK IN GEAR. LET’S ALSO LOOK. SHE PLAYED THREE

PLAYERS IN THE TOP 12. SO THIS WASN’T NECESSARILY AN EASY DRAW. AND SHE WAS ABLE TO STILL GET HER WAY THROUGH IT. >> AND ANISIMOVA, WHO HAD BEATEN HER AT THIS EVENT BEFORE, IT’S NOT JUST THAT SHE’S WAITING. I MEAN, LOOK, COCO IS THE ONLY PLAYER HERE WHO PUSHED HER TO MORE THAN THREE GAMES IN A SINGLE SET, BUT ALSO THE WAY SHE WON THOSE SETS. >> EARLY CUSHION. >> WE SAW THAT YESTERDAY IN THE FINAL. AN EARLY BREAK MAKES IT SO MUCH EASIER. I’M JUST REALLY IMPRESSED BY HOW BUTTONED UP THAT WAS. >> AND

WE ALWAYS THOUGHT OF HER AS THIS. THIS BIG SLUGGER. >> SHE CAN HIT ANYONE ON THE COURT, SHE CAN HIT HER WAY OUT OF MATCHES TO HER DEFENSE WAS REALLY GOOD TOO. THIS IS A VERY COMPLETE TENNIS PLAYER ALL OF A SUDDEN AND NO LULLS AND NO LULLS AT ALL. >> I MEAN, LOOK, EVEN IF YOU’RE PLAYING GREAT BIG TENNIS, YOU’RE SIX THREE, THREE, ONE. MAYBE YOU GIVE BACK A BREAK. IT GETS A LITTLE TIGHT. THEN YOU FIND A WAY TO PULL THROUGH. THIS WAS VERY CLEAN ALL THE WAY THROUGHOUT HER PERSONALITY. WE’VE SEEN THROUGHOUT

THE PAST FEW YEARS IS AMAZING. LAST YEAR, WHEN SHE WON THE TITLE, PUT OUT A TIKTOK, SAID EVERY BODY WANTED TO KNOW WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF I DIDN’T WIN. THAT WAS THAT WAS CLASSIC. I GUESS WE’LL NEVER KNOW. THIS IS THIS YEAR’S TIKTOK CELEBRATION. >> MUCH HAPPIER, MUCH LESS DRAMA. THIS YEAR, IT’S ALL HAPPINESS. IT FELT LIKE THIS YEAR, NOT QUITE AS EMOTIONAL AS LAST YEAR. SHE’S GOT A PHENOMENAL TEAM. THEY SUPPORT HER THROUGH THE HIGHS AND THE LOWS. THEY GET HER AND WHAT DO THEY GET TO DO? THEY GET TO DANCE AGAIN IN MELBOURNE.

>> YOU KNOW WHAT I BET? I BET THEY’RE STILL GOING. I BET THEY’RE STILL PARTYING OVER THERE. WE’RE WAITING FOR HER TO COME OUT OF HER SHELL A LITTLE. YEAH SHOW SOME EMOTION. I MEAN, THEIR TEAM WAS DANCING BEFORE THE TOURNAMENT EVEN STARTED. YEAH, RIGHT. EXACTLY EXACTLY. >> THAT WAS A GREAT CLIP. THAT’S ONE OF THE THINGS. >> IT’S ONE OF HER THINGS. YOU GOT THE MOVES ON TIKTOK? OH, YEAH. SHE LOVES A GOOD PHOTO SHOOT. CANNOT WAIT TO SEE THOSE AS WELL. LAST YEAR HAD THAT DRESS GOING ON ON THE RIVER. HERE ARE YOUR

RECENT CHAMPIONS. AND YOU KNOW WE’VE SEEN A LOT OF DIFFERENT WINNERS. BUT NOW ARYNA SABALENKA BACK TO BACK. FIRST TIME WE’VE SEEN THAT SINCE VICTORIA AZARENKA MORE THAN TEN YEARS AGO JOHN. YEAH >> AND YOU SEE WE’VE SEEN SOME DOUBLE WINNERS WITH SERENA AND NAOMI OSAKA. BUT THEN BACK TO BACK SABALENKA THIS ALWAYS IS AN INTERESTING TOURNAMENT TO SORT OF WHO’S GOING TO COME OUT OF THE GATES