A Hollywood film of Aryna Sabalenka’s 2025 US Open win might have had the subtitle: The Great Escape. Now, the world No1 must prepare for the sequel.Last year, the Belarusian star had one last chance to win a major in New York at the third attempt, or else suffer the indignity of being the best player in the women’s game without winning a Grand Slam trophy in the calendar year. It took two sets to topple Amanda Anisimova, and after the deciding tiebreak, Sabalenka retained her crown on Arthur Ashe Stadium.Now Sabalenka finds herself back in a familiar position. Only this time the challenge is two-fold: defend her title and keep hold of her world No1 ranking.This year’s task is an almighty gambit. Victory at Flushing Meadows is the only way for the Belarusian to assure a firm grip on the top spot, with closest rival Elena Rybakina snapping at her heels.Rybakina may have beaten Sabalenka at the Australian Open in January, but she is far from the sole challenger. In-form home favourites Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula are both capable of causing trouble for Sabalenka, with the former having beaten her in two Slam finals – including the 2022 US Open.Defeat to Rybakina at the start of the year preceded a remarkable run of form where Sabalenka became only the fifth woman to win the Sunshine Double of Indian Wells and Miami Open.But then something snapped. Perhaps it was defeat in her Rome quarter-final against Hailey Baptiste that started the slide, ending not just her 15-match winning streak, but her incredible record of 19 straight victories in tie-breaks. Aryna Sabalenka knows how to play the crowd and appeal to New York’s celebrity culture – but can she claim another Grand Slam? The tennis star is looking to retain her world No 1 status and also grow herself as a brand An upturn in fortunes threatened briefly at the French Open with Sabalenka one set and 4-1 up in the second set of her quarter-final against Diana Schnaider. But the Belarusian disintegrated in spectacular fashion to lose the third to love.At Wimbledon, she couldn’t make it past Naomi Osaka, who ended her run in the fourth round, her earliest Grand Slam exit since 2022. By now, Sabalenka’s season had entered crisis mode.When Sabalenka is on song, her opponents feel as though they have been blasted off the court, caught up in the tornado of her aggression and left confused by the whip-cracking serves and bullets sent down from the baseline. Players who can’t absorb her power haven’t got a hope.But when things aren’t going her way, Sabalenka has found it difficult to adjust her game plan mid-match, continuing to try to muscle her way through her problems and watching the unforced errors stack up.Sabalenka has also become increasingly vulnerable to the best of her peers. Since April, she has only beaten six opponents ranked inside the top 40, and lost to seven of them.There are no easy conclusions to draw on as to why Sabalenka is experiencing such a shift in her game. No public injury concerns, disruptions to her coaching team or changes in her personal life she has shared.Instead, her level has dropped and she has been punished by the constant grind of the tour. She has been a special guest of Gucci and Vogue in New York City this week Her relationship with Brazilian entrepreneuer Georgios Frangulis is sure to make headlines Sabalenka wore an exquisite set of Material Good jewellery at the French Open The 28-year-old is increasingly becoming known for her fashion choices alongside tennis Repeated collapses in deciding sets have forced Sabalenka’s hand. She has chosen to work on her mental game, re-hiring the sports psychologist she dropped in 2022. Then, Sabalenka hired biomechanics specialist Gavin MacMillan in his place, who reworked her serve and helped her to win her first major at Australia in 2023. The 28-year-old described herself as her ‘own psychologist’ before claiming that title. Three years later, she needs a second opinion.’It’s good to have someone back who knows you well, who can just say a couple things that are going to completely flip the page,’ Sabalenka told TIME this month, a ‘shocking reminder’ of the approach she knows she should have.There have been suggestions that attempts to keep her cool on-court have blunted the ‘tiger power’ (she has a tattoo of the animal on her arm and decorates her Nike shoes with its stripes) key to her bombastic style.When asked whether she felt that had been the case in her defeat to Osaka at Wimbledon, Sabalenka’s ‘no’ could hardly have been shorter or more dismissive. But watching her huff with obvious frustration during her defeat to Bejlek will not have eased concerns that her on-court state of mind is unusually unsettled.After all, Sabalenka likes to be the best. She’s used to it too, having sat No1 in the world for 96 consecutive weeks. Being the best has brought her magazine cover shoots, high-profile sponsors like Gucci and Audemars Piguet, exclusive Nike kits and her own Tiger Edition Wilson racquet. Sporting over £160,000-worth of rubies, emeralds, and diamonds on-court, as Sabalenka has done at all three Grand Slams this year as part of her deal with New York jeweller Material Good, is harder to pull off as world No7.It’s fitting then, that once again, New York is the backdrop to Sabalenka’s last shot at glory in 2026. The US Open is American to its core; bigger, brasher, and bolder than Melbourne, Paris, or London, sprinkled with the celebrity stardust that has turned the tournament into the hottest ticket in town for two weeks every year. Players who can harness the crowd’s energy, particularly during its floodlit night matches, come alive in the Big Apple. Sabalenka’s power has earned her the nickname ‘the tiger’ and she has a tattoo of the animal on her left forearm Sabalenka’s tiger tattoo pictured in 2023 in a Wimbledon first-round clash And Sabalenka is nothing if not an entertainer. Two years ago, she offered spectators a round of drinks in exchange for their support through the tournament and she returns this year as their defending champion for a second time. With the crowd likely on her side again – at least until she faces a local talent – there is no better backdrop for Sabalenka to regain her form at a tournament that must rank as one of, if not, her favourite.What remains beyond dispute is Sabalenka’s talent. The form storm will surely pass. There will likely be more Grand Slam titles in the future – and you would be a fool to write off Sabalenka from delivering a blockbuster curtain call in New York.