Ahead of the Wuhan Open, Aryna Sabalenka opened up about all the nasty online abuse she’s subjected to.
Sabalenka took time away from tennis after she clinched her second US Open crown last month, as she spent some time in Greece with her boyfriend, Georgios Frangulis.
Now she is back in China as she looks to continue a remarkable record at one of the most prestigious events on the WTA Tour calendar, as she has won on her last three visits to Wuhan.
Sabalenka is one of the most popular players in tennis and her engaging social media content has earned her a global fanbase of many millions on Instagram and TikTok.
Yet amid the adulation that comes her way, there are also some less positive comments and she admits that is part of the challenge of being a high-profile star.
“Well, I think all of us go through a lot of hate,” began Sabalenka.
“Throughout my career, I faced a lot of hate and a lot of different hate for different reasons. So I figured that the more you give attention to that, the more it takes energy from you.
“I feel like it’s better to ignore it, but sometimes, of course, I see those messages, and out of curiosity, I go to the page of the person who messaged me.
“Sometimes I’m shocked. Sometimes there’s like, mothers messaging such terrible things. Sometimes it just you can see the person is doing nothing and commenting on people who is trying to do something in life, who is trying to motivate, inspire next generation.
“I take it as a joke. I feel like they’ve never been in our shoes, and to make such terrible comments. It’s just, it just shows how terrible they are as people. And I think every player should take it as a joke and never, never, ever really go deep into that dark, dark space of social media.”
Sabalenka went on to suggest she will not change her approach to social media despite some negativity, as she admitted she enjoys giving her fans an insight into her world.
“I feel like I’m like an open book right now,” she added. “Sometimes they ask me, what is something that people will be surprised to know about you? And I’m like, they know everything, like literally everything about me!
“I show everything. And, the main reason was that, you know, I look really aggressive on court, and I cannot look at myself, watch myself playing. I feel terrible about myself because I’m super aggressive.
“I felt like and I wanted to be connected with people. I wanted to feel support in the stadiums. I wanted to experience that support, so I felt like I need to share myself.
“I need to show people who, who Aryna is and everything came from there, and that’s why I started to share myself to just to make sure that I can stay connected with people.”
Sabalenka will be defending a remarkable unbeaten record in Wuhan, as she has won all 17 of the matches she has played in the tournament since her debut appearance in 2018.
