Aryna Sabalenka talks Wuhan Open, motivation, favorite Chinese foods

Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus will face Magdalena Frech of Poland in the women's singles quarterfinals at the Wuhan Open in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, later on Friday.

In an interview with Sports Scene's Shen Xiang on Wednesday, Sabalenka discussed her motivation throughout her career and shared her love for Chinese food, especially fried rice, while also recounting her experiences trying dishes like Peking duck.

Sabalenka knocked out Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic in the second round and Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan in the last 16 to reach the quarterfinals.

"Yeah, I'm super happy with the win, especially against Katarina, someone who is fighting for, fight until the last point," the World No. 2 said. "So I'm happy to get through this round and get the win in two sets. And I mean, expectations are always the same, but I feel like it's about fighting for every point and focusing on yourself, and yeah, trying to do your best in each match and hopefully you're gonna get this title."

Sabalenka has a very aggressive style of play and is widely regarded one of the toughest opponents for any player, thanks in large part to her resilience. She told Sports Scene that she is motivated by her father's advice to never give up.

"When I was a kid, my dad used to tell me that he's not gonna be (angry) only if he see that I'm not giving up and I'm fighting until the last point, and I'm putting everything I have on court," the Belarusian said. "So you know, it's been something like from the childhood, I was always a fighter and I never gave up. And you know, if I would give up, I would feel so bad for so long. So I'm just trying to bring fight and I'm trying to give my best every time I'm on the court. And if it works, it works. If not, it's just a lesson and I have to work on something else."

Sabalenka also revealed that she has tried and likes a lot of Chinese dishes, including Peking duck and fried rice.

"I tried Peking duck in Beijing. It was really good," she said. "I actually like the Chinese restaurants. I like orange chicken. I like - what do they call it - something like puff? I don't remember the name, but it's a little bit spicy, like fried chicken spicy, with the spicy sauce and some nuts on it, and also comes with the fried rice. So I like to go to the Chinese places all around the world. And yeah, I love a lot of stuff, but when I'm here, I don't know why, but I eat fried rice most of the time."