‘High testosterone’ Aryna Sabalenka will get her revenge: The pointed gesture from ladies’s tennis star at centre of ‘manliness’ row after her opponent refused to apologise
Aryna Sabalenka appeared to mock an opponent who accused her of having a biological advantage – by kissing her biceps after winning in straight sets.
The women’s tennis No 1 beat Marta Kostyuk 6-4, 6-3 to lift a third Brisbane International title without dropping a set all week.
Their showdown came after Kostyuk claimed Sabalenka has a ‘higher level of testosterone’ which gives her an ‘advantage’. Sabalenka’s testosterone levels are not public knowledge.
In a frosty post-match trophy presentation, Kostyuk refused to shake Sabalenka’s hand and did not mention the Belarusian star by name in her speech.
Sabalenka has denied that her biceps-kissing was directed at Kostyuk, claiming she was ‘just making fun with my team’, but it is not a gesture we’re accustomed to seeing.
In October, Kostyuk had told Tennis 365: ‘Against Iga (Swiatek), when I have played her, I wasn’t ready to play her at all. I played her over a year ago and she was very strong.
Aryna Sabalenka kissed her biceps after beating Marta Kostyuk – potentially a dig at the latter accusign her of having ‘higher testosterone levels’
Sabalenka beat Kostyuk in straight sets to win the Brisbane International title – but her opponent refused to shake her hand afterwards
Kostyuk says her testosterone comments were taken out of context but the two have an ongoing feud
Sabalenka subtly hit back with a post from Dubai after hanging out with ‘bestie’ Paula Badosa
‘With Aryna (Sabalenka), I know it is a tough battle. I have my own skills, but at the end of the day, they are all much bigger than me, much taller than me, much stronger than me.
‘We all have our own biological structure. Some have a higher level of testosterone, some have lower. It’s just natural and that definitely helps.
‘I feel smaller than them. I try to see how I can beat these players with the tennis skills I have, but I have to work harder to win the points. I have to run a lot more than them to win points.
‘I cannot make myself 10kgs bigger or five centimetres taller, so I have to use everything I had at 100 percent. For other players, they have more of an advantage in other things. This is just the way I am.
‘I look at the photos when we shake hands at the net and I look so much smaller than some of my opponents. It’s just part of the sport and a very cool challenge for me to take on these players. There are many, many things I can do to be better, but they have an advantage on me.’
Sabalenka did not comment on that assessment but within days had posted some very feminine photos of herself in a bikini in Dubai along with fellow player Paula Badosa.
The four-time Grand Slam winner was at a glamorous five-star resort called Atlantis the Royal, where rooms for the night can comfortably exceed £1,000.
Kostyuk has since claimed that her comments 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.
‘If I had said something wrong, I never have a problem to apologize or to reach out to someone or whatever, but this was not the case at all,’ Kostyuk said of her testosterone comment.
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.
