Aryna Sabalenka responds to backlash she received | Sports News

Aryna Sabalenka has damaged her silence on the online criticism she confronted for returning to the courtroom shortly after the tragic passing of her ex-boyfriend, Konstantin Koltso.

Back in March 2024, Koltsov fell from a balcony on the twenty third flooring of a Miami five-star lodge in what first responders deemed an obvious suicide. He was 42 years previous.

At the time of his death, Sabalenka — who issued an fast response to her sudden Italian Open exit earlier this month — was taking part in a apply session forward of the Miami Open. Though the tennis star was no longer relationship Koltsov, police knowledgeable her of the hockey participant’s passing whereas she was nonetheless on the apply courts.

“I was fighting with the cop,” Sabalenka recalled during a prolonged interview with Vogue. “Like, I couldn’t accept it.”

On the heels of the unimaginable tragedy, Sabalenka opted to take part within the Miami Open, during which she defeated Paula Badosa earlier than falling to Anhelina Kalinina within the Round of 32. Her determination to stay within the match swiftly drew a fierce wave of backlash on social media, with many followers questioning why she didn’t step away from competitors.

“I don’t know if there’s any cliché about how you’re supposed to grieve,” Sabalenka famous. “I feel like in this situation, there is no right and wrong. We all need different things. For me, going back to work is the only way. I’m 28, but sometimes I think I’ve had everything in life that you could imagine.”

Sabalenka turned to tennis within the wake of one other personal loss back in November 2019 as soon as her father, Sergey, abruptly handed away of meningitis. On the day he got here down with the sickness, medics lowered his fever however opted to keep him home.

Though Sabalenka’s mom known as for an ambulance the next day, first responders as soon as again avoided bringing him to a native hospital. “I was like, let me f—— carry him to the hospital myself if the ambulance isn’t taking him,” Sabalenka stated. “They took him on the third day, and it was too late. It was even harder for my mom. And I didn’t realize until later how much my sister suffered. We were both daddy’s little girls.”

Given Sergey’s immense affect on her profession, Sabalenka conceded that she nonetheless grows emotional when enthusiastic about how a lot her father would’ve loved watching her rise to World No. 1. “People say that time helps, but in some ways I struggle more now because I know how much fun my dad would be having with my success,” she stated.

“Nowadays my fiancé will find me crying in bed in the evening because I’m watching Reels and there’s something about a father, or old times. The most sensitive videos for me are when I see people posting a family reaction to their kid athlete winning something, and I just imagine how my dad would react to me.

“I’m crying like crazy, like I just lost him. There are so many fathers on tour, and when I see a healthy relationship and a proud dad, I think, Girl, just enjoy it, because you never know what’s coming. You’re so lucky.”