"Hope Aryna Sabalenka is okay, this is crazy"; "Thought she was going to puke" - Fans concerned as Belarusian skips presser after French Open QF loss

Aryna Sabalenka had a torrid outing on Wednesday, June 5, as she was ousted from the French Open by 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva in the quarterfinals. Sabalenka, evidently suffering from a stomach issue, narrowly won the first set 7-6(5).

However, as her condition worsened despite taking multiple medical timeouts, Andreeva took advantage and won the next two sets 6-4, 6-4. Fans expressed their concern for the World No. 2 after she chose to skip her post-match press conference.

Sabalenka was among the favorites for this year's French Open women's singles title, having reached the finals of both the Madrid Open and the Italian Open in the buildup to the clay-court Major. However, her stomach problem proved telling in the quarterfinals against Andreeva, as she struggled with her movement and kept making uncharasteristic errors throughout.

After the conclusion of the match, the Belarusian once again turned to the tournament's medical team for help, deciding to do away with her press conference altogether.

One set of concerned fans wished for the rapid recovery of the two-time reigning Australian Open champion.

"OMG I hope she is okay , this is crazy," one fan wrote.

"No surprise. Really thought she was going to (puke emoji) on court. Get better Sabz," another fan commented.

"God I really hope she feels better, mad respect for her to fight through it. Women really have it hard and deserve more credit," wrote another fan.

Another set of fans lauded Aryna Sabalenka for finishing the match despite the circumstances she found herself in.

"Kudos to her for even finishing the match," commented one fan.

"Y’all act like she wasn’t f***ing struggling during the match. Mirra is a good player, but Sabalenka was not playing at 100%," one fan wrote, hitting out at the Belarusian's critics.

"And she took it to 3 sets," another fan chimed in.

Aryna Sabalenka's French Open QF loss sees her relinquish her World No. 2 ranking to Coco Gauff

Aryna Sabalenka (L) and Coco Gauff (R) at the 2024 Australian Open

Aryna Sabalenka's loss to Andreeva will see a shake-up at the top of the WTA Tour rankings, with Coco Gauff set to become the new World No. 2 once the French Open comes to its conclusion. Gauff had already booked her spot in the semifinals of the claycourt Major by the time Sabalenka took to Court Philippe Chatrier to face Andreeva.

The reigning US champion is slated to face World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the semifinals in her bid to reach the French Open final for the second time in her career. Gauff achieved the feat in 2022, but was thoroughly outclassed by the Pole back then.

However, if she does spring a surprise on the World No. 1 and reaches the final, she will face either Andreeva or Jasmine Paolini, who eliminated another favorite in World No. 4 Elena Rybakina.