Aryna Sabalenka was a picture of joy – and rocking some Bridgerton vibes – this morning as she posed in a punt in the Royal Botanic Gardens cradling the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup.
Sabalenka criticised the ban, saying players had no control over the war in Ukraine, and was disappointed she couldn’t compete in one of the four major tournaments last year.“The problem is that we have to speak loud about that ... but why should we scream about that in every corner? It’s not going to help at all. We have zero control under this situation.”“I’m just really disappointed sport is somehow in politics. We’re just athletes playing their sport. That’s it ...
“They banned us from Wimbledon, and what did it change? Nothing – they’re still doing this, and this is the sad [part] of this situation.”Sabalenka also said having to compete under a neutral flag at the Australian Open made her feel like she was “from nowhere”. The ban means fellow heavy-hitter and Belarusian player Victoria Azarenka, who made the semi-final this year at the Australian Open, also won’t be able to compete, along with prominent players Daria Kasatkina, Veronika Kudermetova and men’s headliners Karen Khachanov, Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev.“I think it’s the best morning of my life. It’s so beautiful,” she said.
After admitting she used to find it strange people would ask for her signature, thinking she was “a nobody” without a world title to her name, she has a newfound respect for herself.“I just feel a little bit more respect for myself right now.”News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport sent every Monday.
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