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After overcoming Elena Rybakina in three sets on Saturday, Aryna Sabalenka was ultimately able to win her first trophy at the Australian Open.
Sabalenka viewed the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup, the Women’s Singles Champion trophy, for the first time after the ceremonial trophy presentation and photoshoot inside Rod Laver Arena.
“Oh my God, I have my name already!” Sabalenka yelled to World Wide of Sports on Nine’s network. “Wow. This is just incredible. There are only stars. Each of the names”
As Sabalenka continued to admire her award, television cameras zoomed in on the trophy to place her name with those of previous winners.
In contrast to the standard arrangement, however, Sabalenka’s name was engraved without the country of her birth, Belarus, whereas the names of the year’s previous two winners, Naomi Osaka and Ash Barty, had acronyms for Japan and Australia, respectively.
Sabalenka’s name is etched on the trophy, but her native Belarus is omitted.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) have prohibited Russian and Belarusian players from participating in sanctioned competitions unless they play under a neutral flag.
Although Belarus is not directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine, its support for Russia prompted the ATP and WTA to prohibit players from competing under the two banners beginning in March 2022.
Throughout the 2018 Australian Open, Sabalenka played with a white flag instead of Belarus’ red, green, and white flag, while all of her opponents played with their respective national flags.
“I believe that everyone is still aware that I am a Belarusian player. “That’s it,” Sabalenka exclaimed following her victory.
Last year, Wimbledon prohibited all Belarusian and Russian players from competing. Sabalenka was a member of the group that was not invited to London, along with former world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Karen Khachanov, Victoria Azarenka, and Daria Kasatkina.
Sabalenka is only the second Belarusian woman to win a Grand Slam, following Victoria Azarenka’s consecutive Australian Open victories in 2012 and 2013.
She also became the first Russian or Belarussian singles player to win a Grand Slam since Maria Sharapova at the 2014 French Open.
»Important element missing from Aryna Sabalenka’s Australian Open trophy«