Aryna Sabalenka Revisits Controversial Comment About Coco Gauff She Made After 2025 French Open Heartbreak

Aryna Sabalenka improved her head-to-head record over Coco Gauff to 7-6 after the Miami Open final.

Aryna Sabalenka Revisits Controversial Comment About Coco Gauff She Made After 2025 French Open Heartbreak

Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka (Image via X/Complex, Univers Tennis)

In Short
  • Aryna Sabalenka faced backlash for comments made after her 2025 French Open loss to Coco Gauff.
  • She later apologized to Gauff and created a TikTok video to show there is no animosity between them.
  • Sabalenka withdrew from the Stuttgart Open, while Gauff expressed confidence in her chances at the tournament.

Aryna Sabalenka was so emotional after her heartbreaking defeat at the 2025 French Open that she ended up making some comments that sparked controversy. She said she lost the final not because Coco Gauff played better, but because she herself did not play well.

And as expected, her comment sparked backlash, and Sabalenka apologized to the American ace. She also made a TikTok video with Gauff to show that there’s no bad blood between them.

The Stuttgart Open is underway, but Sabalenka has pulled out of the tournament. She instead recently sat for an interview with Esquire, during which she was asked about the aforementioned comment about Gauff.

That was very tough. I have to take my time after the match before I go to the press conference, when I lose the match, because when you do it straightaway, you’re still that emotional person. In that press conference, I didn’t know what I was talking about. Then I went through the stats, talked to my team, and I got to a different conclusion and different opinion. I messaged Coco, saying like, ‘Listen, I’m so sorry.’

Before the French Open, Sabalenka defeated Gauff in the Madrid Open final. This year’s Madrid Open will start on April 21. Sabalenka will be chasing her fourth title in the Spanish capital, as she clinched the title in 2021 and 2023 and also made the final in 2024, but lost to four-time Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek.

Coco Gauff on her chances at the Stuttgart Open after Aryna Sabalenka’s withdrawal

Aryna Sabalenka is a four-time finalist in Stuttgart, reaching the championship clashes in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2025. Ash Barty beat her in her maiden final, while in the following two seasons, Iga Swiatek denied her the win. Last year, it was Jelena Ostapenko who dashed her hopes.

Coco Gauff
Coco Gauff (Image via X/Game, Set & Talk)

This year, Sabalenka has played four tournaments so far, and in every event, she reached the final. After defending her Brisbane International title, the Belarusian suffered a three-set heartbreak at the hands of Elena Rybakina in the Australian Open final.

After skipping the two WTA 1000 tournaments in the Middle East, Sabalenka completed the Sunshine Double. She first took her revenge on the Kazakh ace in the Indian Wells final before she denied glory to home favorite Coco Gauff in the Miami Open final.

Sabalenka’s absence in Stuttgart makes no difference, said Gauff in the pre-tournament press conference. The 22-year-old will instead focus solely on her game and said she has confidence in her ability to win a title regardless of who is playing.

I mean, yeah, always have a chance, regardless of who’s in the draw, Aryna or whoever is in the draw. Always have a good chance to do well at any tournament. It’s the first clay tournament of the year for me. Some people have already got matches at Billie Jean King Cup, last week in Linz. I’m not treating this as trying to win; I think it is just more so for the process to do well over the next coming weeks.

Gauff has never reached the final in Stuttgart. Last year, her campaign ended at the hands of Jasmine Paolini in the quarterfinals. On the clay swing last year, apart from the Madrid Open and the French Open finals, she also reached the Italian Open final but lost the match to Paolini.

The last time Gauff won a title was at the 2025 Wuhan Open. In her Stuttgart Open opening-round match, the two-time Grand Slam singles champion will be up against Liudmila Samsonova. Gauff won her previous three meetings against the Russian ace.

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