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Aryna Sabalenka is no stranger to losing her cool during a tennis match, but the world number one may have gone too far during a heated match against American Jessica Pegula.
It was a women’s singles semifinal match at the Wuhan Open in China, where Sabalenka, frustrated after her backhand went out of bounds, threw her tennis racket onto the court.
While it is not uncommon for tennis players to show frustration, Sabalenka’s racquet throw nearly hit a ball boy near the umpire’s chair, prompting some stern words from the Pak Gazette broadcast team.
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Aryna Sabalenka in action against Jessica Pegula of the United States in the semi-final on Day 8 of the Wuhan Open at the Optics Valley International Tennis Center on October 11, 2025 in Wuhan, China. (Robert Prange/Getty Images)
“That’s dangerous territory for Sabalenka, this semi-final came to life in the last 10 of 15 minutes,” an announcer said, according to The Sun.
“Sabalenka gets a warning for racket abuse, but she’s lucky it’s not more.”
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Sabalenka was probably trying to throw the racket toward his bench, but the ball boy was standing between there and the umpire’s chair. The video showed her quickly raising her hand to acknowledge committing a crime.
At the time, the match was tied with the third set tied 5-5 after Sabalenka lost three straight games to Pegula. He lost the eleventh game and, although he fought back to force a tiebreaker, fell to Pegula.
Sabalenka, the reigning US Open winner, would lose 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2) to Pegula, who advanced to the final against fellow American Coco Gauff. Pegula fell to Gauff in straight sets, 6-4, 7-5.
Aryna Sabalenka reacts against Jessica Pegula of the United States in the women’s singles semi-final match during day 8 of the 2025 Wuhan Open at Optics Valley International Tennis Center on October 11, 2025 in Wuhan, China. (Wang He/Getty Images)
Sabalenka, 27, has had fits of frustration in previous matches, with some wondering why there were “crickets” on the court considering she almost hurt a spectator in this one.
“How come Sabalenka didn’t get a warning for throwing the racket?” wrote user X. “She also almost hit a ball boy, could have been a disqualification. [Iga] “Swiatek would have been burned at the stake for this.”
This tournament came after Sabalenka defended her US Open crown last month. He won his fourth Grand Slam title in a season in which he could have had more.
Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus reacts in the women’s singles round of 32 match against Rebecca Sramkova of Slovakia on Day 5 of the Wuhan Open 2025 at Optics Valley International Tennis Center on October 8, 2025 in Wuhan, Hubei province of China. (WUHAN OFFICIAL OPEN 2025/VCG via Getty Images)
Sabalenka fell in the finals of the Australian and French Open, while she exited Wimbledon in the semi-finals.
