World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka’s racket throw nearly hits the ball boy at the Wuhan Open
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It’s no stranger to Aryna Sabalenka losing her cool during a tennis match, but the world number one may have taken it too far during a heated match against American Jessica Pegula.
It was the women’s singles semifinal at the Wuhan Open in China, where Sabalenka became frustrated after her backhand went out of bounds, and she threw her tennis racket onto the court.
While it is not uncommon for tennis players to show frustration, Sabalenka’s racket toss nearly hit a ball boy near the umpire’s chair, leading to some stern words from the Sky Sports broadcast team.
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Aryna Sabalenka in action against Jessica Pegula of the United States in the semifinals on day 8 of the Wuhan Open at Optix Valley International Tennis Center on October 11, 2025 in Wuhan, China. (Robert Prang/Getty Images)
“This is dangerous territory for Sabalenka, the semi-final exploded into life in the last 10 to 15 minutes,” one TV channel said. The sun.
“Sabalenka was booked for racket abuse, but she’s lucky that’s not the case anymore.”
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Sabalenka was probably trying to throw the racket toward her bench, but the ball boy was standing between there and the umpire’s chair. A video clip showed her quickly raising her hand to admit she had committed violations.
The match at that time was tense, with the third set tied 5-5 after Sabalenka lost three consecutive games to Pegula. She lost the eleventh game, and although she struggled to force a tiebreaker, she fell to Pegula.
Sabalenka, the defending US Open champion, lost to Pegula 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2), who qualified for the final match against her American compatriot Coco Gauff. Pegula fell to Gauff in straight sets, 6-4 and 7-5.
Aryna Sabalenka reacts against Jessica Pegula of the United States in their women’s singles semifinal match during day eight of the 2025 Wuhan Open at Optix Valley International Tennis Center on October 11, 2025 in Wuhan, China. (Wang He/Getty Images)
The 27-year-old Sabalenka suffered from bouts of frustration in the past matches, and some were wondering why there were “cockroaches” on the field, considering that these cockroaches almost hit a passerby.
“How did Sabalenka not get a booking for throwing her racket?” One X user wrote. “She almost hit one of the ball girls too, and that would have been a disqualification. [Iga] Swiatek could have been burned at the stake because of this.”
This tournament came after Sabalenka defended her title at the US Open last month. She claimed her fourth Grand Slam title in a season in which she could have had more.
Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus reacts in her women’s singles round-of-32 match against Rebecca Sramkova of Slovakia on day five of the 2025 Wuhan Open at Optix Valley International Tennis Center on October 8, 2025 in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. (Wuhan Official Open 2025/VCG via Getty Images)
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Sabalenka fell in the Australian and French Open finals, while she was eliminated from Wimbledon in the semi-finals.
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