“Things are Turned Around”: Elina Svitolina Responds to Aryna Sabalenka’s Apology Over Misinterpreted Remarks
Following her defeat to Elina Svitolina and elimination from the WTA Finals, Aryna Sabalenka now finds herself at the center of a controversy. A video of her from the match against the Ukrainian has circulated like wildfire on social media. Sabalenka can be heard swearing in the video after losing a point. While many accused her of being disrespectful towards Svitolina, the Belarusian soon clarified that her comments were directed at a group of spectators. But Svitolina hasn’t made a big deal of the incident, stating that things are easily twisted on social media
“You see there’s many, many Ukrainians, many flags, and many Ukrainian supporters are here, and of course they want me to win in this particular match,” she said after defeating Linda Noskova 6-2, 6-1 in the semifinals of the WTA Finals. “I think we played many times with Aryna (Sabalenka), and it’s always, you know, she has her fans, I have my fans. So every country, every match that we played has been kind of different.
“So yeah, I’ve seen a glimpse of it because it’s obviously in social media but yeah just hope that the matches between us are respected in a way because in some matches that we played there’s also not been great comments towards me on regards of the war. So yeah, it is like this on social media. Sometimes things are turned around a little bit.”
The incident occurred when Sabalenka was trailing Svitolina 1-2 in the third set and was on game point. But she missed the ball toss while serving and lost the point. It was after this that she was heard swearing out of frustration and was visibly dejected. Sabalenka lost that game as Svitolina went on to win the next three as well, clinching the match 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 and qualifying for the semifinals.
Sabalenka later clarified that she was agitated by a group of Ukrainian supporters, who were cheering on her mistakes. The World No. 3 couldn’t keep a check on her emotions and fired back a few nasty comments at the crowd. She apologized for the incident on social media and also congratulated Svitolina on her victory.
“I want to clarify something from my recent match that has been circulating online,” she wrote on her Instagram story. “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. 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.”
This is now the second time in a span of a few months that Sabalenka has found herself in hot water because of her on-court actions. She previously lost her cool following her defeat to Elena Rybakina in the US Open final. The Belarusian smashed a ball so hard in frustration that it flew into the stands. Not only did Sabalenka earn a code violation for ball abuse, but she was later handed a fine as well.
Aryna Sabalenka was fined by the USTA for her behavior at the US Open final
Sabalenka was issued a $7,500 penalty because of the code violation. It was the third-biggest fine handed to a player at this year’s US Open. But ball abuse wasn’t the only questionable thing Sabalenka did after the final.
She smashed her racket into pieces after the match and was heard swearing at a cameraman as well. Sabalenka’s behavior didn’t sit well with many, and it didn’t take long for her to come under intense scrutiny.
But the 28-year-old surprisingly defended her actions, stating that she couldn’t control her emotions because of the weight of the defeat. The result meant that Sabalenka lost the chance of completing a three-peat at the US Open, and she also got dethroned by Rybakina from the summit of the rankings.
“It’s really tough to control your emotions when you lose in the final of the Grand Slam and when you were trying to go for a three-peat,” she had said during the post-match press conference. “I just wanted to let it go, because if I would hold it inside, right now over here or over there on the court, I wouldn’t be able to say a word.”
Things have gotten pretty bad for Sabalenka since the US Open. She suffered early exits at both the China Open and Wuhan Open before getting knocked out in the group stages at the WTA Finals. Though she made a strong start to the tournament by defeating Karolina Muchova in straight sets, losses to Mirra Andreeva and Svitolina sealed her fate. It remains to be seen whether Sabalenka will be able to improve her form at the start of the 2027 season.
