Sabalenka Apologizes Over Viral Clip, Says Her Comment Was Not Directed at Svitolina
On November 14, Belarusian player Aryna Sabalenka posted a statement on her Instagram story apologizing over a viral clip from her WTA Finals match against Ukrainian opponent Elina Svitolina the previous day at Indian Wells, California. She said the comment was not directed at Svitolina, but was an emotional reaction to a small group of spectators in the stands.
"I want to clarify something from my recent match that has been circulating online. My comment was not directed at Elina. I was frustrated with a small group of spectators who were aggressively cheering my mistakes, and I reacted emotionally in the moment," she wrote. "That said, I should have handled my frustration differently, and I apologise to anyone I offended. Elina played a great match, and I wish her all the best for the rest of the tournament."
The clip shared widely on social media shows Sabalenka swearing during the match, but the sound is inaudible. According to Tennis Majors, some users, relying on lip-reading, claimed she had insulted Svitolina or Ukrainians in Russian, but their interpretations of her exact words differ and could not be independently verified.
After the clip spread, Belarusian opposition politician Pavel Latushka called her behaviour "absolutely unacceptable" on X and demanded that she be suspended from all WTA-sanctioned tournaments. At the time of Tennis Majors' reporting, the WTA had not commented on the incident, and Svitolina made no reference to it after the match.
Svitolina won the match on November 13, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, to reach the semi-finals and knock Sabalenka out of the tournament. According to Tennis Majors, Sabalenka was visibly angry with herself throughout the match and let a lead slip in both the first and third sets. Svitolina did not shake hands with her at the end of the match, as she has done with all Russian and Belarusian players since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Source: AFP
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 萨巴伦卡2025年在迈阿密公开赛的资料图，Vbrunophotog摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经Wikimedia Commons；非本次比赛画面。/ File photo of Aryna Sabalenka at the 2025 Miami Open, by Vbrunophotog, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; not a photo from this match.
