Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka tears up as she praises 'the craziest team on tour'

Aryna Sabalenka struggled to contain her emotions as she praised her coaching staff after winning the Australian Open title, calling them 'the craziest team on the tour' . The Belarusian tennis star has endured a difficult 2022 season, including being one of many stars unable to play at Wimbledon due to the ban in place.

She had to completely overhaul her serve technique after being forced to use an underarm technique after being unable to hit an onside serve. There was immediate progress in her game as she qualified for the semi-finals of the US Open and finished second in the WTA Finals.

Everything was ready for the world No. 5 to qualify for the Australian Open title, where she had previously failed to make it past the fourth round. But no one seemed to want to stop Sabalenka this time around until she faced reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.

The 23-year-old looked set to land her second major in just months after winning the opening set. However, Sabalenka was able to refocus and quickly leveled things to force a tense deciding set.

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There wasn't much to separate the two powerful hitters, but Sabalenka got the break of serve to put her in the ascendant. After missing her first three championship points, Sabalenka was able to count on the fourth before collapsing to the ground in tears.

Those emotions continued when she received the Daphne Akhurst Trophy and dedicated the triumph to her team. "My team, the craziest team on the circuit, I would say," she said.

"We went through a lot of lows, I would say last year, we worked so hard and you deserve this trophy. It's more about you than me. Thank you for all you do for me. I love you guys. Thank you."

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There was clearly a high level of respect between the players when they met for the fourth time. All of their matches have gone to a third set decider and Sabalenka is hoping for more encounters with Rybakina in the future.

“I want to congratulate Elena on an incredible two weeks,” she added. "You are such a great player and of course we will have a lot more battles hopefully in Grand Slam finals.

"I want to congratulate your team, you are amazing... You did a great job, congratulations guys."