World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka believes people often think she’s a bitch ‘because of my Slavic face’ as she prepares to launch her bid to win her first Wimbledon title.
The Belarusian star has reached the semi-finals of the famous tournament three times and will be desperate to add the crown to her Australian and US Open crowns when the tournament begins on Sunday, local time.
While her off-court persona is full of fun, dancing and laughter, the 28-year-old has admitted her rivals and fans have often mistaken her for an unfriendly figure due to her facial features.
Even her best friend on the tour, Spain’s famously intense Paula Badosa, thought she was an intimidating and hostile player until they got to know each other.
‘When we met, I was like, “Oh, I thought you were a bitch!” And she’s like, “I thought you were a bitch, too!”‘ Sabalenka told The Guardian.
‘I was, like, “Well, I guess that’s not true, so we can be friends.” She’s, like, “Yeah, we’re actually quite similar.” I guess it’s just the attitude that we carry on court.’
Aryna Sabalenka’s off-court persona is full of fun and laughter, but she has admitted many people see her as a ‘bitch’ on the tour
The world No.1 says the misperception is due to her facial features, which can make her look ‘very aggressive’
But Sabalenka also admitted that her looks mean people get the wrong idea about her no matter where she is.
‘When you see me for the first time, you’re probably going to think I’m a bitch because of my Slavic face,’ she explained.
‘It doesn’t help with that [perception].
‘When I’m walking with this flat face and no emotions, I can look very aggressive.
‘So I understand why some people think I’m a bitch.
‘When you get to know me better you understand that it’s just something I was born with.’
Asked about her often fiery on-court presence, Sabalenka said she’s always in ‘an ongoing battle with my emotions’.
Sabalenka (pictured with fiancé Georgios Frangulis) will be trying to add the Wimbledon crown to her huge trophy cabinet when the tournament begins on Sunday, local time
The 28-year-old has been cutting her media time short at Wimbledon to protest against the amount of prize money stars receive
‘Even if sometimes you see me getting emotional or yelling at my box, it’s something that I need,’ she explained.
‘It’s something that we spoke about with my team; that whenever I feel like I’m holding too much, just throw the racket, yell something, let it go.
‘Now I’m in better control, but, of course, still I do things that I’m not proud of.
‘Everyone says you have to be in control, you have to be flat with your emotions, don’t show anything. And I found it was destroying me from the inside.
‘You’re just holding so much.
‘So I asked my team to be OK with me yelling at them; like, just throwing this aggression to someone that can handle it, just so I can continue fighting on the court.’
Sabalenka and men’s world No.1 Jannik Sinner have been leading player protests at Wimbledon as they campaign for more prize money.
The stars limited their media appearances to 15 minutes last week, after doing the same at the French Open.
Wimbledon has upped prize money by 20 per cent but that isn’t enough for the players, who say the revised figure gives them just over 14 per cent of the total revenue from the tournament, not the 16 per cent they are seeking.
‘We do it for the tour, we don’t do it for ourselves,’ Sabalenka said.
‘We do it for the rest of the players who are suffering to even hire a coach. It’s not an easy life for lower-ranked players.’
