A frosty exchange unfolded between Ukrainian star Marta Kostyuk and Aryna Sabalenka, as the Belarusian claimed her second consecutive Brisbane International title on Sunday.
It was the world No.1’s third-straight Brisbane final, and the Belarusian looked in comfortable surroundings as she bested Kostyuk 6-4, 6-3 at the Pat Rafter Arena.
After the victory, Sabalenka looked down the court at Kostyuk and kissed both biceps.
Initial speculation arose that the celebration was perhaps a nod to previous comments by Kostyuk that Sabalenka possessed higher testosterone levels than other WTA Tour players. Kostyuk had said: ‘Some have a higher level of testosterone’ and added that Sabalenka was ‘much bigger than me, much taller than me, much stronger than me’.
Sabalenka later snubbed claims that it was a dig at her opponent, stating: ‘I was just making fun with my team.’
Kostyuk had previously claimed that the comments, which were made last year, were taken out of context. But the incident had increased tensions between the pair, which had first arisen after the Ukrainian refused to shake the Belarusian’s hand following a match at the 2023 French Open, due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A tense moment unfolded after Aryna Sabalenka (pictured) claimed her second successive Brisbane International title on Sunday
Ukrainian star Marta Kostyuk had opted not to shake her Belarusian opponent’s hand after the match
Sabalenka claimed a straight-sets victory in Brisbane and had also appeared to kiss her biceps during the match
The post-match trophy presentation was equally frosty. Kostyuk first refused to shake her opponent’s hand.
Kostyuk later delivered a passionate post-match speech, where the 23-year-old spoke about the current conditions in her homeland. Kostyuk did not mention Sabalenka by name.
‘I want to say a few words about Ukraine,’ Kostyuk said. ‘I play every day with a pain in my heart.
‘There are thousands of people who are without light and warm water right now, it is -20ºC outside right now, so it is very, very painful to live this reality every day.
‘I was incredibly moved and happy to see so many Ukrainian fans and flags here this week… slava Ukraini (which translates to glory to Ukraine).’
Sabalenka, meanwhile, congratulated Kostyuk, stating she hoped they would meet in another final soon.
The world No 1 was later asked about Kostyuk’s refusal to shake her hand.
‘It’s their position,’ Sabalenka said. ‘What can I do? I don’t mind that.
Kostyuk (pictured) took a moment after the match to speak about her home country Ukraine, stating that thousands of people were ‘living without light and warm water right now, it is -20ºC outside right now’
‘I don’t care about that. When I go into the match, it’s all about tennis and sport.
‘When I go out there, I think about my tennis and think about what I have to do to get the win. It doesn’t matter if it’s Marta Kostyuk or Jessica Pegula. I still go out there and try my best and fight for the trophy. I have nothing to prove. I go out there and compete as an athlete.’
On the court, Sabalenka had thanked her coaching team before dropping a hint to her boyfriend.
‘Thank you to my team for handling me,’ said Sabalenka. ‘I’m really the toughest one to handle, and you guys are the toughest people in the world if you can handle me.’
She also took a cheeky dig at her boyfriend Georgios Frangulis, hinting that he should propose to her.
‘Hopefully, soon I will call you something else,’ Sabalenka said, looking at Frangulis in the player’s box. ‘That just put extra pressure, right?’
Sabalenka is currently out to defend her Australian Open title for the third successive time, with the first major of the year due to commence on Sunday, January 18.
Kostyuk went hard early by attacking Sabalenka’s second serve, clawing back an early break with sublime drop shots that briefly rattled the world No. 1.
Sabalenka (pictured) was later asked about Kostyuk’s refusal to shake her hand, saying: ‘I don’t care about that’
However, Sabalenka´s relentless intensity and match smarts proved decisive as she exploited the oppressive Brisbane humidity with punishing baseline rallies to clinch the opening set in 40 minutes.
Kostyuk wilted under the physical strain and Sabalenka accelerated in the second set.
With a mix of raking groundstrokes and deceptive drop shots, she forced a mounting error count from the Ukrainian to close out the match without dropping a set all week.
Later, Daniil Medvedev also won his 22nd singles title after easing past Brandon Nakashima 6-2, 7-6 (1) in the men’s final.
The Russian dominated the American in the tiebreaker, claiming the first five points.
