The French Open is less than a week away, though the tournament is lacking some pageantry following the notable withdrawals of major favorites, such as Carlos Alcaraz.
She gave an interview to Vogue this week, in which the Belarusian player discussed how the death of her father in 2019 shaped her career. Elsewhere in the tennis world, two ATP players fought at the end of a tournament in another pre-French Open clash.
Aryna Sabalenka opens up
Sergey Sabalenka passed away from meningitis in 2019 at the age of 43 while his daughter was away training in Minsk. Sergey, a former hockey player, once had professional dreams of his own that were ended by a car crash when he was 19.
Aryna was 21 at the time, having just reached her first grand slam fourth round. “I was like, let me ——- carry him to the hospital myself if the ambulance isn’t taking him,” Sabalenka said in a recent interview with Vogue.
“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.”
Sabalenka dealt with further emotional strike in 2024 when her ex-boyfriend Konstantin Koltsov suddenly died in a hotel. She’s engaged now to her fiancé, Georgios Frangulls. “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,” she shared.
Clash in Bordeaux
Argentine Juan Manuel Cerundolo knocked off Belgian player Raphael Collignon 507, 6-1, 7-6 in the final of the ATP Challenger Bordeaux. Collignon, a third-round finisher at the 2025 US Open, jabbed his finger at his Argentine opponent after the match.
Cerundolo opted not to shake the official’s hand and instead remonstrated his match grievances, perhaps relating to his Belgian rival’s behavior, to his coach’s box.
The Argentine cooled off by the time he spoke to press post-match. “I think that the key is to stay point by point and keep winning step by step, and I think that’s what is important,” he shared.