Sabalenka won the Brisbane International, taking down Polina Kudermetova in the final, as she enjoyed the best possible preparation for her Australian Open title defense.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be for the Belarussian star, as Sabalenka lost to Madison Keys in the Australian Open final, 3-6, 6-2, 5-7.

The world number one will now head to Qatar for the WTA 1000 event in Doha, which begins on February 10.

During practice, however, Sabalenka has encountered a problem that many of her ATP Tour counterparts have recently been discussing.

Aryna Sabalenka shares shocking photo after recent tennis ball controversy

Sabalenka took to social media earlier on Friday, to share a photo of two tennis balls.

“25 minutes v new,” she said.

“Crazy difference.”

The photo shows just how quickly modern tennis balls lose their freshness, after being hit by one of the most powerful players on tour.

Several players on the ATP Tour have recently been discussing the problems with tennis balls, as Carlos Alcaraz claimed they were an injury risk.

“Every week, practically every week, we have different balls, different conditions, so it’s complicated to adapt to them,” he said.

“I think last year there were many injuries, many players with elbow or shoulder issues, something needs to change.”

He was proven right almost immediately, as Taylor Fritz suffered an injury at the Dallas Open, earlier this week.

“They were like the deadest balls ever so I’m just throwing my whole body into every single shot I hit and I think I maybe slightly tore something,” said Fritz.

Former doubles specialist Nick Monroe recently gave his thoughts on the tennis balls used on the ATP Tour.

“What the ATP is trying to do with that more durable ball that they’re using in Dallas is try to find a ball they can use on clay, hard, and grass courts,” he said.

The ATP Tour may be trying to do the right thing, but with injuries racking up, and star players speaking out, it may be time to revert to less ‘durable’ balls soon.

Aryna Sabalenka set for potential clash with Emma Raducanu at the Qatar Open

Just a few days away from the first WTA 1000 tournament of the season, Sabalenka will be looking ahead to her opening match in the Middle East.

As the top seed for the tournament, she will enter the event in the second round, where she will face off against the winner of Ekaterina Alexandrova and Emma Raducanu.

The British star has lost her last three matches on the WTA Tour but can spring a surprise at her best, as she did by winning the US Open in 2021.

Sabalenka and Raducanu have played one another just the one time in their careers to date, at Indian Wells last year.

Reaching the third round in California for the third year running, Raducanu looked to cause a big upset against the Belarussian star.

It wasn’t to be, however, as Sabalenka beat the Brit in two competitive sets, 6-3, 7-5, to advance to the last 16.

If Raducanu can make her way past Alexandrova in Qatar, she’ll no doubt hope to score her first-ever win over a world number one, in an Indian Wells rematch with Sabalenka.

Sabalenka and Raducanu would certainly get fans out of their seats in Qatar, but there are plenty of other exciting match-ups that we could see in the second round.

• Elina Svitolina v [6] Jessica Pegula
• [9] Paula Badosa v Victoria Azarenka
• [7] Qinwen Zheng v Ons Jabeur
• Caroline Garcia v [4] Jasmine Paolini
• Maria Sakkari v [2] Iga Swiatek

Several Major champions, finalists, and semi-finalists are all set to take part in the Middle East, an exciting prospect for fans of the WTA Tour.

A battle of two former Grand Slam finalists, Ons Jabeur and Qinwen Zheng could well be the pick of the bunch, should Jabeur advance against McCartney Kessler in her opener.

There’s plenty to look forward to in Doha, as the Qatar Open gets underway on February 10.

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