As anticipated, Aryna Sabalenka defeated her closest friend Paula Badosa in her Miami Open opener, cutting a sorrowful figure in the process. Her only displays of emotion came when she hugged the Spaniard after the game and occasionally laughed and joked, even though it had been days since her ex-boyfriend Konstantin Koltsov died in what appeared to be a suicide.
While she has dealt with personal difficulties in the past that have affected her, Andrea Petkovic said in her Substack newsletter that she finds it “unfathomable” that Sabalenka must go through this under close observation and expressed her best wishes as a result.
After the unexpected death on Monday, many predicted that Sabalenka would withdraw from the Miami Open. However, she resumed playing shortly after her father’s death, suggesting that she probably utilizes it as a coping strategy. The World Number Two, however, made a modest statement on social media stating that she would not be doing any press for the foreseeable future, which was the sole condition on her playing this week. As a result, the story quickly gained international attention.
“The awful news regarding Aryna Sabalenka’s former partner has truly shocked me and the tennis community.” I’ve had to play important matches while thinking about personal issues, but they were mainly that—personal. Aryna being required to It’s incomprehensible to me how to handle the sadness and have everyone know about it,” Petkovic stated.
It served as inspiration for this essay in part because it serves as a reminder to everyone—including myself, who works as a booth attendant calling tennis matches—that you never know what goes on behind the scenes. In this instance, it is, and I feel so bad for the friends and family of Aryna and Konstantin,” she continued.