"I really thought that this situation was my fault" - Aryna Sabalenka opens up about how she was affected by the Ukraine crisis
Aryna Sabalenka stated that there was a time when she thought she was responsible for the Ukraine crisis.
There has been quite a bit of talk lately about the possibility of Russian and Belarusian tennis players competing at the Wimbledon Championships this year after being barred from taking part in the tournament last year.
Asked about the same during her press conference at Indian Wells, Sabalenka said that she hoped that the Russian and Belarusian players would be allowed to compete in the grass Slam.
"Well, to be honest, I am trying to stay away from this. Last year, it was super painful for me and I was really worried about that but this year, I mean, I cannot control it," Aryna Sabalenka said.
"They will do whatever they want to and I really that we are going to playing there. I like the tournament, it's a beautiful place, I like the crowd. I really miss the people there because it's really enjoyable playing in front of fans there. So yeah, I really hope they're going to let us play. If not, then what can I do," she added.
The WTA World No. 2 was also asked how she felt about being pulled about an argument related to the ongoing war in Ukraine. The 24-year-old said that she felt responsible for the situation because of the way people made her feel about it.
"Before, I was really worried about that and I didn't really know what to do and I really thought that this situation was my fault, you know," she said.
"Like, the reaction of people to some different things made me feel really bad but then I realized that this is not under my control and I did nothing bad against Ukrainian people," she added. "So yeah, this is not my fault, zero control in this situation. Unfortunately, we're somehow invited in all this."
Aryna Sabalenka will face Evgeniya Rodina in second round of 2023 BNP Paribas Open
Having received a bye to the second round of the BNP Paribas Open by virtue of being a seeded player, Aryna Sabalenka will face World No. 427 Evgeniya Rodina in her opening match of the tournament. Rodina defeated Alize Cornet 6-2, 7-5 in the opening round.
Australian Open champion Sabalenka and Rodina will lock horns for the second time in the main draw of the WTA tour, with the Belarusian winning their last meeting at the Tashkent Open in 2017.
The winner of the match will face either Donna Vekic or Lesia Tsurenko in the third round.