"I expected Iga Swiatek to win gold... that's her place" - Aryna Sabalenka surprised by Paris Olympics women's singles finalists
Aryna Sabalenka has said that she expected rival Iga Swiatek to win the women's singles gold medal at the ongoing Paris Olympics. World No. 1 Swiatek was remarkably ousted by Zheng Qinwen (2-6, 5-7) in the semifinals and had to settle for the bronze medal after winning the third-place match against Anna Karolina Schmiedlova on Friday, August 2.
In the other semifinal, it was Croatia's Donna Vekic who steamrolled Schmiedlova (6-4, 6-0) to set up a final against Zheng; a final few would have predicted when the draws came out. Meanwhile, Sabalenka herself is currently in action at the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, D.C., after deciding to skip the Paris Olympics to be at her best during the season's summer hardcourt swing.
The Belarusian is through to the semifinals of the WTA 500 event after defeating veteran compatriot Victoria Azarenka 6-4, 6-4 in the quarters. After her win over Azarenka, Aryna Sabalenka said that she wasn't following the Olympics closely and instead, focusing on her own recovery from a shoulder injury that ruled her out of the Wimbledon Championships.
"I'm so embarrassed to say that, but I didn't really follow the Olympics. I was just checking results at the end of the day, watching a little bit of each sports, but not really. Right now I'm not in the best stage I would say coming back after injury and trying to focus on myself. Yeah, I'm following a little bit," Sabalenka said during a post-match press conference.
The two-time reigning Australian Open champion went on to express a hint of surprise at Vekic and Zheng reaching the women's singles gold medal match at the Paris Olympics. According to Sabalenka, she expected Swiatek to go all the way considering the prolific Pole's past success at Roland Garros, where she has already won four French Open titles (2020, 2022, 2023, 2024).
"I don't want to say something bad about the players (Vekic and Zheng). Honestly, of course, I expected Iga to win a gold medal. It's Paris. That's her place," Sabalenka added.
However, the World No. 3 admitted that both Vekic and Zheng "are playing incredible tennis".
"But girls are playing incredible tennis. I think this final is going to be really cool to watch. Yeah, I'm probably - not probably - I'm going to watch the final if I'm not going to play my match. I'm sure this is going to be really great battle," Sabalenka concluded.
Aryna Sabalenka set to clash against Marie Bouzkova in Mubadala Citi DC Open semifinals
Aryna Sabalenka's next outing is slated to be against Czech Marie Bouzkova in the women's singles semifinals of the Mubadala Citi DC Open on Monday, August 5. Bouzkova, currently ranked World No. 43, defeated three Americans (Mccartney Kessler, Taylor Townsend, Robin Montgomery) to set up the semifinal clash against Sabalenka.
The Belarusian and the Czech have faced each other only once before on the WTA Tour. That meeting came in the third round of the 2023 Miami Open, and was a one-sided affair that Sabalenka thoroughly dominated to win 6-1, 6-2.