"I cannot relate" - Aryna Sabalenka issues opposing opinion after Donna Vekic's coach Pam Shriver blasts Australian Open scheduling

Aryna Sabalenka opposed Pam Shriver's criticism of the Australian Open schedule following her fourth-round match against Mirra Andreeva. The Belarusian kicked off a morning session that featured all the women's singles matches of the day followed by the men's.

Day 8 of the 2025 Australian Open, Sunday, January 19, featured four fourth-round singles matches for both men and women. The schedule, released the day before, placed all four women’s matches ahead of the men’s.

Donna Vekic’s coach, Pam Shriver, expressed her displeasure with this scheduling on X, asking,

"What is going on with AO scheduling? Is it a race to get women’s matches out of the way as early as possible on all courts?"

Aryna Sabalenka, who played the first match at Rod Laver Arena on Sunday, was asked about Shriver’s comments during her post-match press conference. The World No. 1 shared a differing perspective, pointing to women receiving night session matches earlier in the event.

"I like both, but I don't know, like the first day I played 7:00 p.m., like I think yesterday there was 7 p.m., uh, girls' matches. So, I'm not sure about that. I mean, so far, I'm happy with the scheduling. I cannot relate to this [Pam Shriver argument]," Sabalenka said.

The defending champion has been in scintillating form winning all four of her matches in Melbourne without dropping a set. On Sunday, she defeated Mirra Andreeva 6-1, 6-2 to advance into the quarterfinals.

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Aryna Sabalenka prefers playing morning and night sessions except for one slot

Aryna Sabalenka at the 2025 Australian Open - Source: Getty

During the aforementioned press conference, when asked about her preferred session to play a match, Aryna Sabalenka revealed she was comfortable with anything. However, she opened up about one slot she does not like.

"I mean, I like to play both, because if you finish early, then you have time for dinner to relax, you're not that late, your sleep is better. But also, of course, I like to play 7 p.m. matches. Not the second [match] after 7pm. I don't want that. [But] Yeah, it's the full stadium, it's a great atmosphere," she said.

Sabalenka is aiming to become only the sixth woman in the Open Era to win three consecutive Australian Open titles. Her next hurdle is a thrilling quarterfinal clash against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. The 27th seed, who defeated Donna Vekic in the fourth round, leads the head-to-head against Sabalenka 2-1.