Just a year ago, the top seed Aryna Sabalenka, sidelined by a shoulder injury, watched Wimbledon slip by. Now, just 3 weeks back, she found herself at the center of a storm after her post-Roland Garros remarks about Coco Gauff, saying she lost the final more than Gauff won it, sparked backlash. A full circle of frustration, missteps, and reflection. But now, with her 1st Wimbledon win since 2023 in the bag, Sabalenka seems to be rewriting the script. Amid a quiet patch-up with Coco at the All England Club before the tournament started, she has now revealed the apology she made to Gauff, proof that time, and grace, can heal!

Right after a commanding 6-1, 7-5 victory over Canadian qualifier Carson Branstine on No. 1 Court at the All England Club, the top seed Aryna Sabalenka stood tall, both in form and in spirit. Speaking to Martina Navratilova and Steve Weissman at the Tennis Channel desk, she openly addressed her episode with Coco Gauff, calling it a “distant memory” and confirming that both players had already moved past it in words and actions before Wimbledon even began.

“It’s something I’m definitely not proud of, but we’re learning, right?” Sabalenka admitted, pulling no punches about her mistake. With a calm strength, she revealed how much Coco’s acceptance of her apology meant: “I lost control over my emotions and I was so upset with myself that I was just completely lost. I’m really happy that she was like, ‘Yeah, girl, I got it; it’s OK.’ It was such a relief [in my heart].”

Sabalenka went deeper, pulling back the emotional curtain. “It was really hard in that moment when I lost,” she said, reflecting on the raw pain of letting the Roland Garros final slip away. “For some reason I thought that I won the first set, and I thought, ‘OK, it’s coming.’ But it slipped away, and then after a little while …”

But growth followed grief later. “I’m glad it happened to me what happened, because I had the opportunity to sit back and look at everything as a bigger picture,” she explained. “I realized she was a better player, so there’s nothing to recover from. Flip the page and move on to the next one. I’m here with a new setup in my head, recharged and ready to go.”

For those tuning in now, the story begins weeks ago, under the burning Parisian sun. Coco Gauff, the relentless American second seed, clawed her way back from a set down to win the French Open title 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-4. It was a pressure-packed battle between the WTA’s fiercest forces. Against Aryna Sabalenka, the Belarusian storm, Gauff didn’t just win a match; she seized a legacy moment.

But the dust hadn’t even begun to settle when Sabalenka lit a fuse post-match. “It was the worst final I have ever played,” she admitted, sharp and exposed. “Like I think Iga… I think she would go out today and she would get the win. It just hurts.” With 70 unforced errors haunting her stat sheet, the truth poured out. “I think she won the match not because she played incredible, just because I made all of those mistakes,” Sabalenka added.

Fast forward to Wimbledon, and in an unexpected plot twist, that tension melted into laughter. On Centre Court, the grass turned into a dance floor. Gauff and Sabalenka moved in sync to C+C Music Factory’s “Gonna Make You Sweat”, a light-hearted clip Wimbledon couldn’t help but share on IG.

It wasn’t just a viral moment; it was poetic. The dance symbolized something deeper: a rivalry rewritten, the madness of sport giving way to rhythm, respect, and release. Competition gave way to camaraderie.

Sabalenka teased, “I wonder what you want us to chat about? Okay, are we still friends?” Gauff grinned, unfazed. “Yeah, we are good.” And with that, Sabalenka closed the chapter: “So you see, it’s all good guys, chill out.”

Now, Sabalenka steps forward with grace and grit, ready for Wimbledon’s challenge. The heartbreak of Paris behind her, her eyes locked on the only slam she’s yet to conquer: grass.

Sabalenka opens up after her first-round win at Wimbledon

Aryna Sabalenka, the world’s top-ranked force, stormed into the second round of Wimbledon with a commanding 6-1, 7-5 win over Canada’s Carson Branstine, who also moonlights as a professional model. 

On a record-scorching Day 1, with temperatures peaking at 87°F, Sabalenka stayed cooler than a glass of Pimm’s, wrapping up business on No. 1 Court in just 73 minutes. This marks only her third Wimbledon in four years, but when she plays, she makes it count, with two semifinals in her last two outings. Now, the experts have spoken: Sabalenka is the one to beat, even ahead of Swiatek, Rybakina, and Gauff.

Her Grand Slam pedigree? Untouchable on hard courts, three major titles. She came heartbreakingly close on clay, falling to Coco Gauff in a brutal three-set battle at Roland Garros. But now, Sabalenka sets her eyes on the lush green of Wimbledon, a surface that fits her ferocity and finesse in equal measure. With her game evolving and her confidence recalibrated, she’s gunning for redemption in London.

Sabalenka came out like a freight train, bulldozing Branstine with a rapid-fire 6-1 opener. Yet, to the Canadians’ credit, the 190th seed put up a valiant fight in the second set, forcing Sabalenka to work for the win. “Well, I think the goal is to win as quickly, as easily as possible, so physically you’re more fresh in the next rounds,” Aryna said.

“But I think it was really good for me to have this little fight in the second set just to, like, see where my level is at, if I’m mentally ready to fight. I think I’m ready. So I think at the end it was good to have this little fight in the second set,” she added.

Up next, she’ll face 26-year-old Czech challenger Brenda Fruhvirtová. With scars from Melbourne and Paris still etched in her journey, the question burns: can Sabalenka rise above the heartache and carve her name into Wimbledon glory?