Aryna Sabalenka is competing in the U.S. Open finals on Saturday, September 6 against the world no. 8 ranked American player Amanda Anisimova. While Aryna is the number one ranked player in women’s tennis, eagle eyed fans noticed something off about her name on the scoreboard. There is no flag next to her name. Since 2022, Aryna has competed without a countries’ representation, and won three Grand Slam titles in the years since. But, why doesn’t she compete with a country like other tennis players?
Aryna was born in Minsk, Belarus in 1998. 24 years later, after Russia invaded Ukraine with the support of Belarus, athletes from Russia and Belarus were banned from most professional sporting events, including from professional tennis. At the time, the International Tennis Federation immediately suspended players from the two countries, writing: “Players from Russia and Belarus will continue to be allowed to compete in international tennis events as individuals.”
The statement continued: “However, they will not compete under the name or flag of Russia or Belarus until further notice.” Since that time, nothing has changed in professional tennis. In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar Australia earlier this year, Aryna commented on the suspension of Russian and Belarusian athletes for the first time.
© Getty Images“It is really sad to see that sports are involved in politics in many ways, because I feel like sport was created to avoid some of the more difficult times,” she explained. “I really hope that we’re not going to face it again. I think people will learn that sport has nothing to do with politics.”
Aryna started playing tennis when she was a child in Belarus. She told First Post in 2017 that her interest in the sport was just by chance. “One day, my dad was just driving me somewhere in the car, and on the way he saw tennis courts. So he took me to the courts. I really liked it and enjoyed it and that’s how it was. That’s how it started,” Aryna explained.
© Getty ImagesSince that chance beginning, Aryna has risen to the top of the game. Currently ranked no. 1, she has made three out of four Grand Slam finals in the 2025 season – losing to Madison Keys at the Australian Open and Coco Gauff at the French Open. On Saturday, Aryna faces Amanda Anisimova, who lost to Iga Światek at Wimbledon in July.
While she’s a bonafide tennis superstar, Aryna often finds herself amidst controversy. After she lost the French Open in June, she downplayed Coco’s performance in a post-match interview, saying Coco “won the match not because she played incredible,” but because “I made all of those mistakes.” A day later, Aryna posted to Instagram, “Yesterday was a tough one. Coco handled the conditions much better than I did and fully deserved the win.”
© Getty ImagesAryna has made an incredible $37.3 million in prize money during her 10 year professional career, ranking eighth in total prize money earned of all time. Outside of her prize money, Aryna has several endorsements with brands like Nike, Wilson, and the wearable tech company Whoop.
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