Aryna Sabalenka has been fined $7,500 (£5,569) following her on-court outburst during the US Open final defeat to Elena Rybakina. The Belarusian received an early code violation for ball abuse, smashed her racket in frustration, and told a TV cameraman to 'f*** off' as the lens zoomed in on her after the match.
Fine and tax hit reduce Sabalenka's prize
The additional fine comes on top of the heavy tax deductions applied to her $2.8 million (£2m) runner-up prize. A 37 per cent federal deduction and a further 9.65 per cent New York state tax reduce her take-home to just under $1.261 million (£1m). Sabalenka is one of 18 players sanctioned this year, with total fines reaching $112,500 (£83,520).
Grand Slam rules state that the maximum fine for smashing a racket is $50,000 (£37,100), although penalties are usually much less. Players can also be fined between $3,000 (£2,200) and $5,000 (£3,700) for an audible obscenity. The fines covered audible obscenities, dress code breaches, and expected performance standards.
Roddick defends Sabalenka's reaction
Despite the fine and backlash from fans, former world No. 1 Andy Roddick defended Sabalenka on his 'Served' podcast. "People are often looking for a reason to just be upset about something and to go Twitter finger their account," he said. "I just think that they are going to look for something. I am not going to get mad at you if you break your own stuff. I don't care as long as you are gracious. Could she do it after? Yeah, sure."
Roddick added: "Am I going to be personally offended that she broke her own thing? No. She has been salty in defeat before. But I do think there is a double standard." He continued: "It's like, what do you want? It's like whatever, just let people live. The mistake she has made before is being disrespectful and taking credit away from your opponent in a public fashion, but I don't care what you say to your team."
Sabalenka explains her emotions
The new world No. 2 was defeated in three sets by Rybakina in New York, with Sabalenka unravelling publicly in the closing stages. Speaking about her reaction, the 28-year-old said: "It's really tough to control your emotions when you lose in the final of a Grand Slam and when you were trying to go for the three-peat. So, I just wanted to let it go because if I would hold it inside right now over here or over there on the court, I wouldn't be able to say a word or I would just go not really nice over there. So, I just wanted to let all of that aggression and disappointment go outside."
