The source of her sheepishness may have been recent events. Days earlier, Chris Evert had been accused of gender stereotyping after saying Karolina Muchova “plays like a guy” when commentating on the Czech’s second-round victory over Naomi Osaka.

“She plays like a guy. She wants to play like a guy. The guys have bigger serves than the women, they have better volleys for the most part, they move a little bit better,” the 18-time major champion said of Muchova.

Her fateful comments may have been well intentioned – for Muchova later revealed she modelled her game on that of her childhood hero,. Roger Federer.  But Evert found herself at the centre of a social media storm, with Ons Jabeur calling her out on X, formerly Twitter. “Muchova is an amazingly talented player. She doesn’t have to be a guy to have great serve, volley or movement. Can we please stop stereotyping based on gender?” the two-time Wimbledon finalist wrote.

Comparisons between sportsmen and women are often futile because of basic differences in physiology. Biology dictates that men can hit the ball harder but that is exactly why Sabalenka’s ferocious forehand under the microscope.

The shot, of Sabalenka’s most prized, has echoes of formidable groundstrokes of Serena Williams that ushered in a new era for women’s tennis. It is also perfectly suited to pacey American hard courts and a skill the two-time slam champion has been priming all year, helped by a conditioning-heavy training regime that she has shared snippets of on her Instagram page.

In the first round of this year’s French Open, Sabalenka recorded a forehand top speed was 125 kph, beating Jannik Sinner’s record of 122kph. It is no coincidence she is the youngest woman to reach four consecutive singles semi-finals at the US Open since Venus Williams in 2002, having also made the quarter-final stage in the last eight Grand Slams she has entered.