Aryna Sabalenka said she has plenty of room for improvement as the Belarusian prepares to start a season as the World No.1 for the first time in her career.

Sabalenka will kick off her 2025 campaign at the Brisbane International, a WTA 500 tournament which begins on Sunday ahead of the Australian Open, the opening Grand Slam of the year.

Sabalenka won her second successive Australian Open title in 2024, beating China’s Qinwen Zheng in the final in straight sets. The 26-year-old is bidding to become the first woman to win three straight Australian Open singles titles since Martina Hingis in 1997 through 1999.

Despite her World No.1 status and winning three of the last four hard-court Grand Slams, Sabalenka believes she still has plenty to work on in her training.

“Oh, there is so many things to improve,” Sabalenka said, according to the WTA website.

“I mean, I’m not that good with maybe my game at the net in singles. There is a lot of things to improve in my touch game. I don’t know, there is so many things, even my serve is not as good as I want it to be, so there is always [elements] to improve,” she added.

“I think the key is just not to focus on the result. Focus on yourself and on improving your game and every time you’re out there, just do your best, and basically that’s it. Control what you can control, and just do everything you can, and see what happened by the end of the tournament.”

At the 2024 Brisbane International, Sabalenka reached the finals, losing to Elena Rybakina in the final in straight sets. Looking to improve on her previous result this time, Sabalenka said she felt “fresh and ready to go.”

“I have a lot of great memories from here and just can’t wait to start playing,” Sabalenka said. “Not the result I wanted at the end, but I’ll try my best this year.

“I love Australia and I always come here hungry and always come here ready. Ready as good as possible,” she added.

“The crowds are incredible here. I feel all the support here, and I think that’s the best thing about Australia, that people are really, really, into tennis. And if they really cheer for you, you’re gonna feel it, and I love that.”

During the off-season, Sabalenka spent time at her home in Florida before heading to the Middle East for pre-season training.

“I’m glad that I stayed at home for a little while,” she said. “Sleep in my own bed, it’s nice, you know, not the hotel rooms.”

“You work hard on lots of things in the pre-season. The first tournament before the major tournament is the one where you can try it out and see what’s going to work well for you, and what’s not.”

The Australian Open will run from January 12 to 26 in Melbourne. While Sabalenka is the reigning women’s champion, World No. 1 Jannik Sinner is the defending men’s champion.