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Aryna Sabalenka's goddaughter recently made waves with her playful yet adorable actions during her post-match interview at the Miami Open. Sabalenka convincingly defeated sixth seed Jasmine Paolini to reach the final of the WTA 1000 event.
The World No. 1 proved dominant from the outset with her powerful serves and groundstrokes. She won the first set 6-2 and mirrored the score in the second to reach the Miami Open final for the first time. On top of that, Sabalenka hasn't lost a set during her campaign in Miami.
Following a dominant semifinal triumph, the 26-year-old spoke to Tennis Channel's Prakash Amritraj. Moreover, Sabalenka's cute little goddaughter, who exuded charm in yellow, also accompanied her. When Amritraj asked about the little one, Sabalenka replied:
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"She is my goddaughter, she is waving to all of you guys. She is sweet (smiles)."
For those unaware, a godchild's baptismal parent pledges to guide her spiritually and support her upbringing. Amritraj, who didn't find the little girl shy in front of the camera, asked her about Sabalenka's performance against Paolini.
"She said yes, If she said yes then yeah, I played well," Sabalenka replied.
Prakash Amritraj later praised the three-time Major champion, comparing her unforced errors and winners to those of the Italian. Meanwhile, Sabalenka's goddaughter made a taunting face by placing thumbs on the cheeks and wiggling her fingers. This got everyone, including her and Amritraj, in stitches.
Sabalenka kissed the young girl on the cheek and called her a superstar. She later spoke a bit about her semifinal encounter and then handed the girl to her father.
Watch the clip shared on X below:
The 26-year-old's 31 winners with just 12 unforced errors proved decisive in her triumph.
"I think I played incredible match and I am super happy that I was able to focus on my serve": Aryna Sabalenka following Miami Open SF win
Aryna Sabalenka was pleased with her playing style and reflected on her performance later in the aforementioned interview. The Belarusian revealed that she kept her groundstrokes low as a strategy against Jasmine Paolini.
"I think I played incredible match and I am super happy that I was able to focus on my serve. And I stayed really low because going through the match against her who play really flat, deep balls. You gotta stay low, so I am super happy with the movement today and yeah it was a great performance from me. It's always tough battle against this means, she said ( at 1:38)."
She hoped that she could replicate a similar performance in the final.
"But I think today, I just brought another level and I really hope, that I will be able to do the same in the final," she added.
Sabalenka will face home favorite Jessica Pegula in the final on Saturday, March 29. Pegula faced tough competition from the Philippine's Alexandra Eala, but eventually prevailed 7-6 (7-3), 5-7, 6-3. Saturday's summit clash will be the ninth meeting between Pegula and Sabalenka, with the latter 6-2 head-to-head advantage.
