Aryna Sabalenka has divided opinion for what she did after losing the Roland Garros final to Coco Gauff.
Sabalenka made controversial comments about Gauff after the Roland Garros final, where she was beaten despite winning the first set.
The world number one has received heavy criticism for this, with even former world number one Andy Roddick calling out Sabalenka for her reaction.
Following the backlash, Sabalenka released a statement to clarify her comments, but the criticism has continued for the Belarusian.
Greg Rusedski critical of one comment Aryna Sabalenka made about Coco Gauff
Former US Open finalist Greg Rusedski is the latest person to have their say on Sabalenka’s comments when speaking on the Inside-In podcast.
In this podcast Rusedski called out Sabalenka, as he claimed there were no excuses for her defeat and suggested that she should have given more credit to Roland Garros champion Gauff.
“We had the complaint at the end of the finals from Sabalenka that ’this was the worst conditions I have ever played, this was the worst tennis I have ever played’,” said Rusedski. “To me it’s like no, this is a Slam, these are seven matches and every day is going to be different.
“It’s not going to be perfect weather. They are not going to put a roof on because it’s windy. So no, Gauff deserves the victory. She deserves to be champion and there’s no excuses.
“Maybe you didn’t feel like you played your best tennis but, come on, give Coco more credit because that was just an astonishing performance mentally from Coco to find a way to win that match.”
Sabalenka’s comments about the conditions were not the only thing that caused criticism, with the three-time Grand Slam champion receiving more backlash for what she said in her press conference.
It was in this press conference that Sabalenka claimed Iga Swiatek would have beaten Gauff, and Rusedski believes that this was where she took it a step too far.
“I have stuck my foot in my mouth on multiple occasions in my career so I know how it feels,” continued Rusedski. “But I kind of think the comments about Swiatek was a bit much. For me that one was a bit much.
“I like the honesty of a player, you have to remember it’s not her Mother tongue, so maybe she doesn’t always put it in the right manner even though her English is exceptional. But there are ways to say the same things without saying them, if that makes sense.
“Just giving more credit to Coco. I think Coco just handled the situation so well and she has matured beyond her years, the way she speaks, when she broke on the tour as a 15 year old beating Venus at Wimbledon.
“She has just gone from strength to strength and the good thing is imagine if we see that in a Wimbledon final again, with those comments!”
When could Aryna Sabalenka play Coco Gauff again?
The Roland Garros final between Sabalenka and Gauff was their 11th meeting overall, and their second in a Grand Slam final.
Gauff leads the head-to-head against Sabalenka 6-5, with attention now turning to the grass court season.
Sabalenka is thought to be favoured at Wimbledon over Gauff, but they have never played a match on grass before.
The first chance for them to change that will be at the Berlin Open, the stacked WTA 500 tournament that also features Jessica Pegula, Jasmine Paolini, Qinwen Zheng, and Mirra Andreeva.
Sabalenka and Gauff will then head to Wimbledon as the top two seeds, as they both look to force a Roland Garros final rematch.
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