During her second-round match at the 2025 Italian Open, in a moment of levity, Aryna Sabalenka flaunted her sense of humor with a hilarious on-court gaffe.
While she was engaged in a battle with Anastasia Potapova, Sabalenka displayed her playful nature. Following an unsuccessful return, she flung the ball over the net with her hand.
Aryna Sabalenka Is Currently Making Her Seventh Appearance at the Elite WTA 100 Tournament in Rome
World No. 1 Sabalenka came into the tournament as the top seed and received a bye to the second round. She then played World No. 34 Potapova, setting the stage for her dominating win. The match ended in a straight set within an hour, and a hilarious incident during the first set made the headlines.
The amusing moment came after Sabalenka led 5-2 in the opening set. On a long rally, Potapova hit a shot that veered off to the net. Sabalenka rushed towards the net, looking to return the ball, but unfortunately ran short.
Rather than rushing for a second try, Sabalenka hesitated briefly, picked up the ball with her hand, and flicked it over the net, landing it on Potapova’s side. The audience burst out laughing at the unscripted moment of humor that Sabalenka had introduced onto the court amid a tense game.
Watch the video here:
Name a funnier player….I’ll wait…. Aryna Sabalenka ladies en gentlemen 😂😂😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/97gwT7AYEi
— Liviefromparis 🇫🇷🤸🏼♀️🎾 (@Livieparis2024) May 9, 2025
Sabalenka made it to the third round, where she will face 31st seed Sofia Kenin on May 10. It will be their fifth encounter on the WTA Tour, where the Belarusian is ahead with a 3-1 head-to-head against the American. The winner of the match will face the winner of Leylah Fernandez and Antonia Ruzic or Marta Kostyuk in the Round of 16.
Aryna Sabalenka Sees Best-Ever Clay Season on the Horizon With Good Start in Rome
Aryna Sabalenka is now playing her third clay-court tournament of the year. She had reached the final at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart before losing to Jelena Ostapenko in the final. She returned strongly to win the Madrid Open against Coco Gauff in the final.
During her post-match press conference after defeating Anastasia Potapova in the second round, Sabalenka shared:
“I definitely improved a lot in my game in the past years, and it’s really important to have this variety on the clay court,” Sabalenka said. “I think on the clay court, it’s more about being ready physically to work for every point.”
“Right now, I’m stronger than ever, physically and mentally, and also my game improved a lot. So, I really hope this is the year where I’m going to look back on the clay-court season and be super proud of myself,” she added.