Sabalenka defeated Jessica Pegula in the final last week, earning her first-ever Miami Open victory.
The opening set versus the American was especially close, as Sabalenka showed where she and Pegula differed at key points.
Pegula observed Sabalenka's progress after the match, which is comparable to what Martina Navratilova had asked her to do three years prior.
At the end of the 2021 season, Sabalenka was rated second in the world, after Ash Barty, who is now retired.
Sabalenka had advanced to two Grand Slam semifinals by this stage of her career, and Navratilova encouraged the Belarusian to concentrate on two specific goals.
Due to serving issues that caused her to receive more double faults than anybody else that year, Sabalenka had a very mixed 2022 season and, to be honest, almost gave up the sport.
Even while it's still not her strongest suit, Sabalenka has improved her serve and controlled her unforced errors, just as Navratilova had hoped.
Despite her remarkable victory at the Miami Open, Sabalenka had 31 wins and 36 unforced mistakes.
Navratilova also called for trying to change her thinking, which was a major issue during her 2022 service issues.
The global number one ranking in 2025 is undoubtedly a possibility, but Sabalenka still vents her displeasure, for which she occasionally receives criticism.
Sabalenka's increased diversity, which has given her power game a new dimension, is among her most recent upgrades.
According to Navratilova, she wanted all ten of the best WTA players at the time—including Iga Swiatek, who was ranked ninth in the world at the time—to get better.
Swiatek had only won two WTA championships in 2021 and had not advanced past the quarterfinals of a major tournament, despite having won one Grand Slam title at the time.
Navratilova appeared to have unwavering confidence in Swiatek, solely encouraging her to trust in her own abilities, a factor that contributed significantly to her victory at the 2020 Roland Garros championship.
Only a few months following Navratilova's remarks, Swiatek stepped up to take the lead and win the world championship.
Furthermore, she secured her second major championship at Roland Garros and achieved a record-breaking 37-match winning streak.
With Navratilova present at her most recent major victory, Swiatek now holds four Roland Garros wins and one US Open.
But after losing to Sabalenka, she has fallen to number two in the global rankings and seems to be struggling with confidence issues.
Swiatek recently discussed her worries, which she acknowledged had been influenced by her one-month anti-doping penalty from the previous year.