World No. 1 Sabalenka made 70 unforced errors in defeat to Gauff in Paris last month.
After that match Sabalenka blamed her own display for the result and said Gauff won “not because she played incredible, just because I made all of those mistakes.”
“Honestly, I think there’s a big possibility that I would have lost this match if I didn’t learn that lesson at the French Open,” Sabalenka said.
“In some moments I just keep reminding myself – which it’s probably a little bit crazy – but I kept reminding myself, ‘Come on, it’s the quarter-final of Wimbledon, you cannot give up, you cannot let the emotions just take over you and lose another match’.
“I was just reminding myself that it’s my dream, why would I give up so easily, so I have to keep fighting. Basically that’s it. I kept telling myself that, and I was willing to win points, to push myself and to get those tough points.”
But the world No. 1 battled hard to stay in the contest against veteran Siegemund, who frustrated Sabalenka with her variety of shots.
“That was definitely a tough one,” said Sabalenka. “You are always out of rhythm, you just have to honestly kind of mentally win the match, be ready to fight for every point. There were no easy points.
“It felt like she was trying to do maybe not the same game style that Coco was doing against me in Roland-Garros, because today was also windy, but I think there was some similarity in the game.
“I’m really proud that I handled myself really well and I didn’t repeat the same mistake I did at the French Open.”
Siegemund, 37, mixed up her game expertly to prevent Sabalenka from building any rhythm throughout the match.
Her slow pace of play in between points also appeared to frustrate the world No. 1 at times.
“I think I was really well prepared for her game, for the way she’s taking time and everything. I was really mentally prepared for that,” Sabalenka added.
“But of course, inside I was struggling because she was playing a really smart game. At the beginning I was missing a lot. I felt like I was rushing. So I’m really glad that after the first set, I was able to kind of like reset a little bit and change my tactic a little bit and get the win.
“I think after the second set, after the middle of the second set, I started feeling my game better, and I had better understanding what should I do to get the win.
“But about her game, I wasn’t really annoyed. What can I do? It was great play, smart play. Tough for my body to play against, but I managed.”
Sabalenka will play 13th seed Amanada Anisimova in the last four at the All England Club.
