The US Open hosted the final match between two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina on September 12, at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York. After Rybakina claimed the title, Sabalenka couldn’t keep hold of her emotions.

Sabalenka was seen smashing her racket on the court after the third set ended. Per X post by The Tennis Letter, Sabalenka told the US Open Press that she smashed the racket to compose herself for the post-match interviews.

“It’s really tough to control your emotions when you lose in a final of a Grand Slam and when you were trying to go for 3-peat,” Sabalenka revealed, per the X post. “If I were to hold it inside, right now or on the court I wouldn’t be able to say a word.”

According to the September 13 X post by The Tennis Letter, Sabalenka clarified while speaking to the press that she wanted to express her disappointment before heading over for the press conferences, and did not want to express any aggression towards the Kazakh champion.

“I would go not really nice over there. I wanted to let go of all that aggression and disappointment outside,” she added.

Rybakina won two out of three sets against the two-time champion. She beat Sabalenka 6-4 and 6-2 in the first and third sets, and lost the second set 5-7.

What made Sabalenka’s defeat even more frustrating is the fact that this was her second loss in the hands of the Kazakh player. Earlier this year, she suffered a similar defeat against Rybakina at the Australian Open finals, losing 4-6, 6-4, 4-6.

BBC radio host theorizes about what led to Sabalenka’s 2026 US Open defeat 

In a September 13 report by BBC, sports journalist Paul Battison discussed some of his theories about what contributed to the Belarusian tennis star’s defeat in the finals.

He pointed out that Sabalenka had a tendency to be hard on herself for missing shots and suffering losses.

He further pointed out that BBC radio host Annabel Croft agreed with the opinion, adding that her loss of control over the emotions often translated into a loss of control over the match on the court.

"It was extraordinary to witness because she had been very negative on herself with her body language in that first set and suddenly the emotions got the better of her," Croft said on BBC Radio 5, per Battison. "I felt like that really contributed to her going down in that first set. She was beating herself."

But the BBC report also included a nod to Sabalenka’s sportsmanship spirit. Despite fighting back tears over her loss, the tennis star praised Rybakina’s performance during the post-match press conference.

Written by

Arundhoti Palit