Elena Rybakina lost her title to Aryna Sabelenka in the Australian Open final.

The 23-year-old Elena had been in impressive form throughout the Australian Open and looked to be on course for a second major title. However, Sabelenka was too strong in the final – her experience and power proving to be too much for Elena who fell4-6 6-3 6-4.

Elena will now look forward to the clay court season and to the next Grand Slam tournament, the French Open, which begins in late May. Despite her disappointment in Australia, Elena Rybakina will be confident of putting on a strong performance in Paris later this year.

Elena’s coach had been encouraging her to be more aggressive and take risks, something that ultimately backfired in the final against Aryna Sabelenka. Despite Elena’s outstanding effort in the match, she was unable to overcome Sabelenka who took advantage of Elena’s tactics to power her way to victory.

Elena will no doubt learn from this experience, and use the lessons to become an even more formidable opponent in the future. Her loss at the Australian Open will not define her career, though she may still rue what could have been had her coaching strategies been more carefully considered.

Elena’s defeat at the Australian Open brings an end to what has been a memorable run for the young Russian. Despite her loss in the final, Elena will look back on this tournament with plenty of pride after an impressive run that included wins over some of the world’s top players. Elena Rybakina has proved yet again why she is one of the most exciting players on tour and we can expect to see more big things from her.