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Aryna Sabalenka fulfilling her promise to Paula Badosa after their intense semifinal clash at the 2025 Australian Open has left fans divided. While some praised her gesture, others had mixed reactions.
In the semifinals of the 2025 Australian Open on Thursday, January 23, Sabalenka went up against Badosa. The Belarusian dominated the match, securing a straight-sets victory with a score of 6-4, 6-2.
After the match, Aryna Sabalenka promised Paula Badosa a gift as a gesture of condolence. True to her word, on Saturday, February 8, she shared a heartwarming moment on her Instagram Story, where she gifted Badosa a wristlet. Alongside the post, she jokingly wrote in the caption:
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“She said she forgave me @paulabadosa.”
In the video, Badosa was seen unboxing the wristlet and said:
“Ah, I love it!”
Fans had mixed reactions to the entire event. While some saw it as a sweet gesture, most didn’t appreciate it and shared their opinions quite harshly about both of them.
One fan called it "embarrassing," pointing out that legendary players such Steffi Graf, Martina Navratilova, and Serena Williams would never have done something like that. They wrote:
“Can you imagine Steffi or Serena or Martina sending a gift to an opponent they defeated? How embarrassing.”
Another highlighted:
“But someone could think that she just gave her this win for this bracelet. Especially in these circumstances of targeting the 3 peat...not very wise from the both of them.”
One person even went a step further, calling Sabalenka "cheap" for drawing attention to the gesture in her Instagram story.
“And of course she had to brag about it on IG. Sweet God, what cheap and childish moves these are and you get excited like pimply teenagers with dad’s hiding Playboy.”
Some fans supported the gesture between the two best friends, choosing to see it as a moment of friendship rather than rivalry, even calling it "cute."
“What is it? A bracelet? So cute to honor a promise,” one wrote.
“This gift-Expensive Beating & move on to the next round at the AO-Priceless” another commented.
“This two 😭😂, ” one mentioned.
Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa set to play in Qatar Open
Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa are all set to compete at the 2025 Qatar Open which runs from February 9 to 15. The WTA 1000 tournament will be played on outdoor hard courts and boasts a prize pool of over $3.6 million. The singles champion will walk away with $597,000 and a crucial 1,000 ranking points, according to WTA Tennis.
Badosa is set to take on the Czech Republic's Katerina Siniakova in her first-round match on Monday, February 10. Meanwhile, Sabalenka will kick off her campaign a day later, though her opponent has yet to be decided.
