Aryna Sabalenka reveals the reason behind her tiger tattoo after progressing to the Australian Open semifinals

Aryna reaches her third consecutive Australian Open semifinals after defeating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 2-6, 6-3.

Aryna Sabalenka reveals the reason behind her tiger tattoo after progressing to the Australian Open semifinals

Aryna Sabalenka (via X)

Aryna Sabalenka once again showed her fighting spirit on the court at the Australian Open as she clinched a place in the semifinals after beating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. The Belarusian, who has won the Melbourne Grand Slam for two consecutive times, now seeks to make it three.

Sabalenka went into her quarter-final match against Pavlyuchenkova without dropping a set. The World No.1 took a strong lead in the first set without much pressure from her Russian opponent. Surprisingly, in the second set, Pavlyuchenkova increased the level of her game, forcing Sabalenka to make mistakes, which allowed her to claim the second set.

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But in the third, Sabalenka was even a breakdown on two occasions in the set. But, she did well to react and turn the match around to claim a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 decisive victory to earn herself a place in the last four of the Australian Open. She’s now level 2-2 against Pavlyuchenkova in their head-to-head record.

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After the match, Sabalenka was asked how she got a tiger tattoo on her left arm. She revealed that it was a year before her eighteenth birthday and that it was a reminder that she never gives up, no matter the troubles around her.

I got it when I was one month before turning eighteen. I don’t know whether I was born the year of tiger but I was literally dreaming of getting a tiger tattoo for six months and after six months I decided to get it and now it’s a reminder that I should never give up, stay hungry and push yourself no matter what is going on in your life.

Aryna Sabalenka said via Eurosport

Sabalenka will now go on to face her friend Paula Badosa in the semifinals, who earlier defeated Coco Gauff in straight sets. The two WTA stars have met seven times in their career, with the former leading 5-2 in their head-to-head record.

Aryna Sabalenka says her team needs to copy what Stefano Vukov did for Elena Rybakina

Elena Rybakina did the almost impossible by winning the 2022 Wimbledon Championship. But before the tournament, she had a bet with her coach, Stefano Vukov, that if she did win the title, he would get a tattoo of her name. Today, the Croatian coach carries the name and date of the year’s Wimbledon final that Rybakina won.

Aryna Sabalenka (11)
Aryna Sabalenka (Image via X)

During the aforementioned on-court interview, Aryna Sabalenka revealed that when she saw what Vukov did she told her team that it meant true love. She added by hilariously saying if she does win it this year she will make her team sleep and then tattoo them a tiger like her’s.

You know what after Elena and her coach did a tattoo after winning Wimbledon, I told my team this is true love. If I should win this year I’m going to put something in their drink that will make them sleep and then I calm a doctor to wake them up so they can see a tiger tattoo on their bodies. I’m just kidding.

Aryna Sabalenka said

Sabalenka’s victory against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova was her 19th straight win at the Australian Open. It was also the first time she lost a set since the 2023 final against Rybakina. She’s currently the Pole favorite to win the title for the third time.