World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka apologises for not giving credit to French Open champ and No. 2 Coco Gauff; Belarusian had blamed her own errors for the result
Coco Gauff with the French Open trophy
Aryna Sabalenka said she has written to Coco Gauff to apologise for the ‘unprofessional’ comments she made following her loss to the American in the final of the French Open.
‘It was a mistake’
Speaking to Eurosport Germany, World No. 1 Sabalenka said her remarks after the 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 loss to Gauff at Roland-Garros this month were a mistake. In her post-match press conference in Paris, Sabalenka had suggested that the result was more due to her own errors than to Gauff’s performance. “I think she won the match not because she played incredible, just because I made all of those mistakes from, if you look from the outside, easy balls,” Sabalenka had said after losing the French Open final on June 7.
Aryna Sabalenka reacts after losing the French Open final to Coco Gauff in Paris on June 7. Pics/Getty Images
Reflecting on those comments, the Belarusian said, “That was just very unprofessional of me. I let my emotions get the better of me. I regret what I said. We all make mistakes. I’m just a human being who’s still learning in life. I think we all have those days when we lose control. But what I also want to say is that I wrote [an apology] to Coco afterwards.”
Sabalenka hit 37 winners, but finished the final with 70 unforced errors, compared to Gauff’s 30. She said she wrote to Gauff to apologise and ‘make sure she knew she absolutely deserved to win the tournament and that I respect her.’
“I never intended to attack her. I was super emotional and not very smart at that press conference. I’m not necessarily grateful for what I did. It took me a while to go back and think about it, to approach it with open eyes, and to understand. I realized a lot about myself. Why did I lose so many finals,” added Sabalenka, a three-time major champion who also lost to Gauff in the 2023 US Open final.
Respect is important
Above all, one thing: I’m the one who always treats my opponents with great respect, whether I win or lose. Without that respect, I wouldn’t be where I am today. So it was a tough, but very valuable lesson for me,” the top-ranked Belarusian added.
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