Aryna Sabalenka’s perseverance was on display at the 2024 Wuhan Open, as she rallied from a set deficit to overcome the in-form Coco Gauff in the semifinals. However, Sabalenka’s hard-fought win was overshadowed by her perceived rude behavior toward a ball girl, which left fans unimpressed.
The incident took place during the third set of the match when Sabalenka was leading 4-2 and had a 30-15 advantage. At that moment, the Belarusian player urged the ball girl to hurry over and hand her the balls.
When the girl failed to run as fast as Sabalenka expected, she put on a disappointed face. Additionally, the way the player returned one of the balls didn’t please the supporters either.
The crowd was shocked with the 2024 US Open winner’s behavior, especially since she is typically seen as a joyful and respectful individual. Consequently, she faced boos from the audience, who did not hesitate to express their disapproval of her perceived rudeness.
Fans on social media also expressed their disappointment, condemning her actions.
Very rude behaviour from Sabalenka towards the ball kids. She got booed for it and deservedly so
Waiting to see if the tennis media will pick it up or not
They’d do it if it was Qinwenpic.twitter.com/kGfieQ41zY
— Dan Gernez (@GernezDan) October 12, 2024
@josemorgado @BastienFachan @TheTennisLetter
Are you going to talk about it?
— Dan Gernez (@GernezDan) October 12, 2024
No need to delete it needs to be called out. Someone else was horrible to a ball kid at the US open this year, and it was rightly called out. It should be called out. They are kids.
— Celèste (@nawsatp) October 12, 2024
It wasn’t cool when Poots was rude to the ball kids and it isn’t cool here. It’s not cool at all.
— The Tennis Porker (@TheTennisPorker) October 12, 2024
However, some fans also sympathized with Sabalenka and blamed the lack of training for the ball boys or girls. They cited similar incidents that occurred in Shanghai, where players complained about the same issue.
Sorry, but these ballkids in China this year are terribly trained, both here and in Shanghai, maybe they could invest some money they put in luring WTA and ATP to run these tournaments there into proper training of their staff
— Matt Soulek (@MattySou) October 12, 2024
Pffff! If you haven’t played professional, highly competitive sports in your life, you have no idea the amount of pressure and lack of patience under these circumstances an athlete could be. But thank you for pointing that out.
— Julio Cesar Rodriguez (@jcrmtxus) October 12, 2024
Keeping that incident aside, the supporters were able to witness an intriguing contest between Sabalenka and Gauff.
Sabalenka will once again take on the home favorite
Gauff, fresh from winning the China Open, was backed by many to reach another final. She started brilliantly by winning the first 6-1. However, the hard court expert bounced back in some style by winning the remaining two sets by the same scoreline (6-4).
As a result, Sabalenka will once again face the home star Qinwen Zheng in the championship clash, having already defeated her in the Australian Open final at the start of this season.
This is yet another instance of the Belarusian player facing a crowd that sides with the home star. Earlier, she played against Jessica Pegula in the final of the latter’s home Grand Slam, the US Open.
Taking confidence from her win at Flushing Meadows, Sabalenka will back herself to prevail in the WTA 1000 final on Sunday. However, it won’t be easy with the home crowd supporting Qinwen Zheng. Fans can catch the action on October 13 at 5:00 am EDT.
