Belarusian tennis star Aryna Sabalenka said she wrote an apology to American Coco Gauff downplaying Gauff’s victory against her in the French Open women’s final earlier this month.
During the post-match press conference, Sabalenka said Gauff won the match “not because she played incredible; just because I made all of those mistakes from — like, if you look from the outside, kind of like from easy balls.”
The Sunday after, Sabalenka also took to social media to say that she “made over 70 unforced errors, so I can’t pretend it was a great day for me.”
“But both things can be true… I didn’t play my best, and Coco stepped up and played with poise and purpose,” Sabalenka added. “She earned that title. Respect. Time to rest, learn and come back stronger.”
On Tuesday, she told Eurosport Germany that she apologized to Gauff in writing to “make sure she knew she absolutely deserved to win the tournament and that I respect her,” according to The Associated Press.
“That was just completely unprofessional of me,” Sabalenka told the outlet. “I let my emotions get the better of me. I absolutely regret what I said back then. You know, 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 to Coco afterward — not immediately, but recently.”
“I never intended to attack her,” Sabalanka continued. “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?”
Gauff earned her first French Open title when she defeated Sabalenka earlier this month, three years after losing the 2022 French Open to Poland’s Iga Swiatek. Gauff’s win also comes roughly two years after defeating Sabalenka in the U.S. Open Final in 2023.
The Women’s Tennis Association has Sabalenka ranked as the world’s top player in women’s singles. Gauff is ranked No. 2.
