The remarkable moment furious US Open finalist Aryna Sabalenka repeatedly smashes her racket on the floor after her heartbreaking defeat to teenage sensation Coco Gauff
- Aryna Sabalenka took frustration out on her racket following US Open final loss
- The Belarusian was defeated by American superstar Coco Gauff in New York
- Sabalenka had already had racket issues in her semi-final win last week
Aryna Sabalenka took her frustration out on her tennis racket after losing to Coco Gauff in the final of the US Open.
The Belarusian took the first set 6-2 at Flushing Meadows before 19-year-old Gauff win the next two sets to earn her first Grand Slam title.
Sabalenka was in tears on the court after the defeat after allowing victory to slip through her fingers, and let her emotions get the better of her once she returned to the dressing room.
A series of unforced errors allowed the crowd at the Arthur Ashe Stadium to cheer Gauff home to success.
Post-game, Sabalenka said: ‘Most of my time I handled my emotions pretty well, congrats to Coco, you played unbelievable in the final.’
Sabalenka can be seen lashing her racket against the floor after returning to the dressing room
The 25-year-old Belarussian then proceeds to dump the damaged racket in a nearby bin
However, once the 25-year-old returned to the locker room, she offered an insight into how she felt about the defeat.
Sabalenka can be seen removing her racket from her kit bag before brutally slamming it against the floor four times.
The racket clearly bends out of shape due to the force with which she is hitting it against the surface.
Aryna Sabalenka was in tears on the court after she lost the US Open final to Coco Gauff
American teenager Gauff recovered from losing the first set to secure her first Grand Slam title
The Austrlian Open winner then proceeds to dump the broken racket in a nearby bin.
Sabalenka was involved in another racket misdemeanour earlier in the US Open, throwing it at her coach following a slow start to her semi-final win against Madison Keys.
She said: ‘It’s all their (the coach’s) fault. No, no, no. … We spoke that if I need to throw those emotions, I have to do it. Otherwise, I’ll just eat myself from the inside. So I was just like yelling, screaming, swearing to them.
‘They know I still love them. It’s for the better, it’s for a good reason.’
