Aryna Sabalenka has been under fire recently for comments she made after the 2025 French Open final.
In a three-set battle, Sabalenka was beaten by Coco Gauff in the 2025 French Open final, 7-6, 2-6, 4-6.
Making 70 unforced errors in the final, Sabalenka claimed the conditions were ‘horrible’ and that her mistakes had handed the title to her American rival.
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Doubling down in her post-match press conference, Sabalenka suggested Iga Swiatek would have beaten Gauff in the final had the Pole won her semi-final match.
Fans and players have widely criticised Sabalenka for her comments, although one WTA star has now come out to defend the world number one for what she said in the aftermath of an ’emotional’ defeat.
Daria Saville says Aryna Sabalenka was ‘really hurt’ after Coco Gauff defeat
Appearing on the Australian Open TV YouTube channel, former world number 20 Daria Saville shared her thoughts on Sabalenka’s comments.
“There was a lot about it on social media. A lot of opinions. Do you want to hear my opinion?” she said.
“I think she was really hurt. I think she didn’t have that much time to process.
“I’ve done that before when I’m still really mad, and I’m just like, I’m going to do the press conference now. I’ve never had a press conference after losing a Grand Slam final. I think she was emotional on court, she was emotional post-match, and she just spoke about how she was feeling.”
Grand Slams have been criticised for not allowing players time to process their feelings after a loss, instead pushing them to speak right away.
Following the Sabalenka/Gauff controversy, former world number one Jimmy Connors suggested Slams give players an extra ‘five minutes’ before speaking to the media.
Saville questioned whether Sabalenka would have said what she did had she watched back the match.
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“I don’t think she looked through someone else’s lens, she was just talking from her own perspective, she was really hurt, and I don’t know if her watching the match back would change her mind,” she said.
Saville’s husband and former Australian Open doubles finalist Luke Saville reflected on the match itself, explaining how Gauff made Sabalenka ‘overplay’.
“We watched the highlights, we thought it was a pretty high level,” he said.
“It was very windy, obviously [Aryna] Sabalenka was playing pretty aggressively, as she normally does.
“Coco [Gauff] is probably the best mover in the game, making a lot of balls, hustling, making Sabalenka play that extra ball, and maybe she was overplaying a little bit.”
The world number 129 agreed, praising Gauff for how she approaches matches.
“That is Coco’s strength; she never beats herself. I’ve actually never played against Coco, but just from watching, she makes people make those unforced errors,” said Saville.
What’s next for Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka after Roland Garros controversy?
The ever-classy Gauff said she wants people to give Sabalenka ‘some slack’ as the world number one continues to receive backlash for her comments.
There doesn’t seem to be any bad blood between the pair, although the drama will certainly add another layer of excitement to their next WTA Tour encounter.
Through 11 matches, Gauff holds a slight lead, 6-5, in the head-to-head over Sabalenka, following her win at Roland Garros.
Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff’s head-to-head record
The pair are, however, yet to play one another on the grass, as fans look ahead to a potential 12th Sabalenka/Gauff clash at Wimbledon next month.
Entering the event as the top two seeds, there is a real chance we will see the American and Belarusian face off in a second consecutive Grand Slam final when tennis heads to the All England Club.
Of the two, it’s Sabalenka who has had more success on grass, reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals on her two previous visits to SW19, whereas Gauff has yet to reach the quarterfinals.
Only time will tell whether we will see Sabalenka and Gauff contest the Wimbledon final in July, but it would certainly be worth tuning in for.
The 2025 Wimbledon tournament is scheduled to begin on Monday, June 30, with the women’s final taking place on Saturday, July 12.