Aryna Sabalenka Criticizes Coaches in Tennis
World’s top-ranked tennis player Aryna Sabalenka from Belarus strongly criticized the presence of domineering coaches in the sport during a press conference on Friday. Following her convincing 6-2, 6-3 victory against Serbia’s Olga Danilovic in the third round, she expressed her disdain for coaches who undermine players’ potential.
Sabalenka’s Journey and Achievements
Sabalenka, a three-time Grand Slam champion with a total of 20 tour titles to her name, recounted her experiences with certain coaches who had belittled her, claiming she would not achieve significant successes in tennis.
“They’ve often implied that I lack intelligence, telling me I wouldn’t reach the top,”
she shared. Reflecting on how she coped with those negative sentiments, she remarked,
“I just laughed and replied, ‘we’ll see.’”
With her recent impressive performances, including back-to-back Australian Open victories in 2023 and 2024 as well as clinching the 2024 US Open title, Sabalenka has firmly established herself as a formidable competitor on the women’s tour, accumulating nearly $35 million in career prize money.
Sabalenka’s Message to Coaches
In a striking message directed at certain coaches, Sabalenka stated,
“I think they should consider quitting their jobs because they really don’t know what they are doing, and doing so could benefit other players.”
French Open Contenders
As she heads into the next phase of the French Open, Sabalenka is regarded as one of the contenders for the title, with betting odds of +260 placed on her by ESPN BET. However, she is content to allow the label of favorite to rest with four-time champion Iga Swiatek, who holds odds of +240. Sabalenka acknowledged the unpredictability of women’s tennis, suggesting that it’s better to credit Swiatek given her prior successes, stating,
“Let’s leave it to Iga since she has won it three times in a row.”
While Swiatek faced challenges leading into the tournament, she has regained her form now that Roland Garros is underway. Meanwhile, Sabalenka continues her impressive run, having only dropped 10 games through her first three matches, setting her sights on a fourth-round clash against No. 16 seed Amanda Anisimova from the United States.
