{
  "id": 4125737,
  "title": "Slumping Sabalenka 'confident' ahead of US Open three-peat bid",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/29/slumping-sabalenka-confident-ahead-of-us-open-three-peat-bid",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-29T06:28:43.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/sports/racquet-sports/2026/08/1521234/slumping-sabalenka-confident-ahead-us-open-three-peat-bid"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "New York - Aryna Sabalenka, the world's top-ranked tennis player from Belarus, is set to launch her campaign for a third consecutive US Open title this weekend. Despite her recent struggles, the four-time Grand Slam champion remains confident ahead of the highly anticipated three-peat bid.\n\nSince winning the Miami Open in March, Sabalenka has not claimed a tournament victory. However, she boasts a strong track record at Flushing Meadows, where she secured back-to-back wins in 2024 and 2025. The 28-year-old acknowledges that she has been in a challenging phase, with quarter-final exits at the French Open and Wimbledon, as well as fourth-round eliminations at the Canadian Open and Cincinnati Open.\n\nNevertheless, Sabalenka is determined to bounce back stronger, focusing on her mental game. She credits her resilience and the lessons learned from past failures as the driving force behind her upcoming campaign. If successful, Sabalenka would become only the third woman, following Chris Evert and Serena Williams, to achieve a three-peat at the US Open.",
  "summary": "NEW YORK: Aryna Sabalenka brushed off concerns about her slumping form on Friday as she prepared to launch her bid for a third straight US Open crown.",
  "key_points": [
    "Aryna Sabalenka aims for third consecutive US Open title",
    "Recent struggles include quarter-final exits at French Open and Wimbledon",
    "Sabalenka focuses on mental game to bounce back stronger"
  ],
  "editors_take": "Sabalenka's confidence ahead of her US Open three-peat bid signals her determination to overcome recent struggles and draw on past resilience to achieve a rare feat in women's tennis history.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}