Sabalenka eases past Badosa it Miami
World number two Aryna Sabalenka made a stoic return to the court on Friday as she eased past Paula Badosa 64, 6-3 to reach the third round of the Miami Open just days after the death of her former boyfriend Konstantin Koltsov.
What was a long and difficult week for the 25-year-old Belarusian, who had received a first round bye, was made a little bit longer as heavy rains swept across South Florida. It delayed the start of play by just over six hours.
While not at her sharpest, the Australian Open champion made quick work of her Spanish opponent as dark clouds again threatened to halt action.
“No, I wasn’t surprised at all (by Sabalenka’s play)”, said Badosa. “She’s a very, very strong woman, strong personality, you can see it on the court. I knew she was going to play very well and I told her I wish her the best and let’s see if she can go very
deep in this tournament.”
Sabalenka issued a brief statement on Wednesday, saying her heart was broken by the “unthinkable tragedy,” but has otherwise remained out of the spotlight.
The statement also revealed that they had split up before the tragedy.
The Miami-dade police department confirmed on Tuesday that they had responded to a call the day before at a Miami resort about reports of a man jumping off a balcony. The police said no foul play was suspected.
Koltsov, 42, played for the Belarus national team at the 2002 and 2010 Olympics and spent parts of three seasons with the National Hockey League’s Pittsburgh Penguins between 2003 and 2006.