As the empty seats at Rod Laver Arena proved, it’s impossible to fake excitement when no-one is comfortable supporting either contestant. This is the most divisive issue in world sport.
Without Ash Barty to make it easy for the locals to figure out who to cheer for, this year’s Australian Open women’s final was always going to be awkward for Melbourne’s tennis clique.
And so it proved. As the rows of empty plastic seats at Rod Laver Arena proved, it’s impossible to fake excitement when no-one is comfortable supporting either contestant.
That’s not the fault of Elena Rybakina or Aryna Sabalenka, the two young women who played their guts out to produce one of the closest finals in years, with Sabalenka prevailing 4-6 6-3 6-4.
“It’s tough to explain what I’m feeling right now,” Sabalenka said.
“I’m just super happy. I don’t know how to explain. It’s just the best day of my life.”
If the experts are right, Sabalenka could be the next big thing in women’s tennis after breaking through for her first grand slam singles title.
Just 24, she’s got the power and skills to win plenty more majors – but only if she’s allowed to.
And that’s the elephant in the room that left the VIPs in the posh seats squirming after Tennis Australia’s leaders had spent the past fortnight ignoring the most divisive issue in world sport.
Through no fault of their own, Rybakina and Sabalenka found themselves in the middle of the row over whether Russian and Belarusian athletes should be allowed to compete on the global stage while Vladimir Putin’s troops continue to wage war on Ukraine.
The Australian Open’s decision to let players compete as ‘neutrals’ is a Band-Aid solution that has appeased no-one because they still ended up with a highly-politicised match-up.
While Sabalenka’s name was engraved next to Barty’s on the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup for the women’s champion, her nationality was left blank, even though everyone knows she’s from Belarus.
“I think everyone still knows that I’m a Belarusian player,” she said.
Asked how well known she is in her homeland, she replied:
“I don’t know. I think I’m famous in my country? It’s not so many good athletes in my country. That’s why I’m famous there.
“I think right now I also have a little bit more respect to myself. I’m kind of starting to understand that I’m actually a good player. I have to respect, not only respect everybody, respect myself as well.”
Sabalenka’s win will only intensify the debate about whether Russian and Belarusian athletes should be allowed to compete while they are being used by politicians for propaganda purposes.
Rybakina has already experienced that.
Born in Moscow, where her parents still live, she switched nationalities to Kazakhstan in 2018 but when she won Wimbledon last year, she was instantly reclaimed by Russians as one of their own.
“Of course, it was not the result I wanted but I think overall it was a really good two weeks for me,” Sabalenka said.
“I think Aryna raised her level in the second set. She played really well, aggressive, a bit less mistakes. I should have been more aggressive in some moments.
“I had some chances, for sure, to turn it around. But, yeah, she played really well today. She was strong mentally, physically. Overall, as I said, it was a good two weeks for me here.”
Originally published as Australian Open 2023: What Aryna Sabalenka’s win over Elena Rybakina means for tennis
