Revealed: The family tragedy behind Aryna Sabalenka’s heartbreaking kiss celebration as she won the Australian Open

Aryna Sabalenka thought of her late father as she blew a kiss to the heavens after beating Zheng Qinwen in a stunning display at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena on Saturday evening.

The 25-year-old was utterly ruthless as she took her second consecutive Australian Open crown in straight sets, fulfilling a dream she shared with her father before his tragic death at just 43 in 2019.

She dedicated the 6-3, 6-2 victory over Zheng to her family, telling them, “I love you so much… Everything I do, I do for you,” as she held the trophy in the middle . court after her heartbreaking gesture.

Sabalenka revealed the ambition she and her father Sergey discussed in season one of the Netflix series Break Point.

Sabalenka’s father (pictured with her) was a driving force behind her rise to the top of tennis, before his tragic and unexpected death in 2019

The straight-sets victory over Zheng Qinwen saw Sabalenka fulfill a dream she shared with her father

‘Four years ago I lost my father. “We had one dream: that I would win a few Grand Slams before I was 25,” she said.

‘When he passed away, I started thinking about it too much. Now I’m 24 and have zero in my pocket.’

The Belarusian world number 2 changed that when she broke through to win her first Australian Open crown by beating Elena Rybakina last year – and broke down after the match as she remembered her father.

In scenes captured in the second season of Break Point, Sabalenka was on the phone with her mother in the locker room after the win when they started talking about her father.

“Mommy, don’t cry, I’m starting to cry, cameras are filming me here,” she says.

“Mom, don’t start talking about Dad, dammit.”

Sabalenka gave a voice-over explaining what her mother said to her.

‘My mother cried and said ‘your father would be super proud of you’.

“It’s really sad because I really want him to be here, I really want to call him and hear what he would say.

“Right now, his last name is on that trophy, which means a lot.”

Sergey was also most on her mind after this year’s victory.

‘I just couldn’t stop. I felt like I just had to keep doing what I was doing,” she told reporters after beating Zheng.

After winning her second Grand Slam crown, Sabalenka said she feels like her father is watching her when she plays and that she is “very proud of me”

The world number 2 broke down in tears as she and her mother spoke about her father after winning the 2023 Australian Open (pictured)

“I just have to keep fighting for my dream and make sure that if there is something I want to believe and if there is something, my dad looks at me and is very proud of me.

“So I just couldn’t stop for my family.”

Sabalenka further expressed her relief that she will never be known as a one-hit wonder when it comes to grand slams – saying she aims to remain dominant.

“It was in my mind that I didn’t want to be that player who won and then disappeared,” Sabalenka said of capturing a second major.

“I just wanted to show that I can be consistent there and that I can win another one.

“I’m really hoping for more than two now.”