sport news Tiny but important detail is missing from Australian Open champ Aryna ... trends now
Aryna Sabalenka wept tears of relief and joy after breaking through for her elusive maiden grand slam title over Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina - but a tiny detail has been left off her Australian Open trophy.
Fifth-seeded Sabalenka battled back from a set down to defeat Rybakina 4-6 6-3 6-4 at Melbourne Park on Saturday night to finally shed her tag as the best female player without a major.
Sabalenka's watershed win completes a glorious unbeaten summer in which the 24-year-old also claimed the Adelaide International title and dropped only one set in 11 matches to vault herself back to No.2 in the world rankings.
Aryna Sabalenka wept tears of relief and joy after breaking through for her elusive maiden grand slam title over Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina - but a tiny detail has been left off her Australian Open trophy
Fifth-seeded Sabalenka battled back from a set down to defeat Rybakina 4-6 6-3 6-4 at Melbourne Park on Saturday night
Ash Barty was fittingly back at Rod Laver Arena on Saturday night to hand over the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup before the Belarusian held her nerve in a gripping final game to deny Rybakina a second slam in seven months.
Sabalenka's name was engraved on the trophy quickly after the match, which she realised while doing a post-match interview.
'Oh my god, I already have my name! Wow. This is just actually unbelievable. It's all the stars. All those names,' she exclaimed.
However, as the cameras zoomed in on the trophy it was revealed that Sabalenka's country of origin was not engraved on the award like it had been for all the champions before her.
However, as the cameras zoomed in on the trophy it was revealed that Sabalenka's country of origin was not engraved like it had been for the champions before her
Sabalenka is from Belarus, which is backing Russia's invasion of Ukraine and is therefore not currently recognised by the Association of Tennis Professionals or the Women's Tennis Association.
Australian Open entrants from Russia and Belarus are allowed to compete only if they do so as neutral players who don't play under their national flag or the name of their country.
Those players didn't have a national flag next to their name when they appeared on TV broadcasts - instead having to settle for a white space.
Sabalenka has the distinction of being the last player to topple Barty in a final, beating Australia's former world No.1 in Madrid in 2019 before the 26-year-old's shock retirement - 12 more titles and three grand
