Aryna Sabalenka was rocking a bagel and falling into a nightmare of defeat before Wimbledon

World number one Aryna Sabalenkova suffered a major setback ahead of Wimbledon after crashing out of the Berlin Open semi-finals in dramatic fashion. Sabalenkova was beaten 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-0 by Jessica Pegula, with the final set ending in a stunning bagel that sparked fresh concerns about her grass-court Grand Slam form.

The defeat was particularly alarming as Sabalenka fought hard to stay alive in the competition. After dropping the opening set, she rallied to win the second set tiebreak to force a decider.

However, she completely lost ground in the third set as Pegula dominated proceedings and handed Belarus a 6-0 defeat in less than half an hour. The loss ended Sabalenka’s Berlin campaign just as she appeared to be picking up steam on grass.

Sabalenka entered the tournament looking to bounce back from a disappointing French Open campaign and initially showed encouraging signs. She defeated Jekaterina Alexandrová and in a difficult three-set quarterfinal she overcame young Czech Nikola Bartunková and reached the last four.

Although she remains one of the favorites for Wimbledon, the manner of her defeat will be worrying. Sabalenkova has reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon three times but is still looking for her first title at the All England Club. The Berlin loss means she goes into her third Grand Slam of the season with questions about her consistency and ability to close out big matches.

SABALENKA KEEP FIGHTING

The Berlin defeat is the latest chapter in an unusually turbulent period for the world number one.

At the French Open earlier this month, Sabalenkova suffered a shocking quarter-final defeat to Diana Shnaider despite winning the first set and being heavily dominated in the second.

Shnaider staged a remarkable comeback to win 3-6, 7-5, 6-0, leaving Sabalenka devastated. After the loss, she admitted that she felt like she wanted to “quit tennis” after letting a golden opportunity slip away.

Her struggles actually started before Roland Garros. In April, Sabalenka suffered a surprise Madrid Open defeat to American Hailey Baptiste after failing to convert six match points. It was one of the biggest wins of Baptiste’s career and a rare stumble for the Belarusian.

Just days later, Sabalenkova stunned again at the Italian Open, where Romanian veteran Sorana Cirstea fought back from a set down to claim a 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 victory. The loss was compounded by concerns over a lower back problem that afflicted Sabalenko during the match.

Three emphatic defeats, a French Open collapse and now a bagel in Berlin have left Sabalenko searching for answers just days before Wimbledon begins.

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Issued by:

sabyasachi chowdhury

Published on:

20 Jun 2026 21:30 IST