'I'm not ready to play five sets': Aryna Sabalenka defends three-set format at Grand Slams

Aryna Sabalenka speaks on possibility of women playing five sets at Grand Slams – but the world No.1 believes not even she is ready for that demand. The world No. 1 starts her campaing in Wimbledon with a straight set victory against Carson Branstine.

Unlike most tournaments, where men often receive higher prize money than women, Grand Slam events have long maintained prize-money parity for each round. However, men still play five sets and women only three, and the debate over whether women should also play five-set matches in Majors resurfaces regularly.

Still, among female players, there’s not much interest in extending the format. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka recently commented on the possibility after a comfortable Wimbledon first-round win over Carson Branstine, 6-1, 7-5.

“Probably physically I’m one of the strongest ones, so maybe it would benefit me. But I think I’m not ready to play five sets,” Sabalenka said after her first round victory. “I think it’s too much on the woman's body. I think we’re not ready for this amount of tennis. I think it would increase the amount of injuries. So I think this is not something I would consider."

“For someone watching, it’s amazing to see five hours of great tennis,” Sabalenka added. “But I’m not really jealous to stay there for five hours as a player. I don’t know how many days they needed to recover after that crazy match.”

“It would favor me just from a physicality standpoint. But I do think it would kind of be a big change for the tour. I think it would be fine just keeping it like how it is,” the American said.

The 3-time Grand Slam champion will play the second round on Tuesday against Czech Marie Bouzková. The 26-year-old had a strong debut, eliminating Lulu Sun – last year’s Wimbledon quarterfinalist. In their three previous matches, Sabalenka leads the H2H 2-1.