Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa were photographed patting each other’s butts, and the Belarusian tennis star hilariously clarified the situation by acknowledging that they both have boyfriends. Badosa, the 2021 Indian Wells champion, and Sabalenka, the 2023 Australian Open champion, are great friends off the court.
In Indian Wells, Badosa and Sabalenka apparently decided to have a little fun on the practice court. Reacting to the photo, Sabalenka tweeted: «Love is in the air.»
Love is in the airâ ¤ï¸ — Sabalenka Aryna (@SabalenkaA) March 7, 2023
In her follow-up tweet, Sabalenka added: «Just to clarify…we have boyfriends (tears of joy face emoji).»
Just to clarify… we have boyfriends😂 — Sabalenka Aryna (@SabalenkaA) March 7, 2023
Meanwhile, this is how Badosa reacted.
🥰 @SabalenkaA 💠— Paula Badosa (@paulabadosa) March 7, 2023
Badosa happy for Sabalenka’s success at the Australian Open
Sabalenka, 24, made her Grand Slam breakthrough earlier this season at Melbourne Park.
In the Australian Open final, Sabalenka rallied from a set down to beat Elena Rybakina. Last year, Sabalenka had a really rough and difficult period as her serve was not working as well and it was negatively affecting her results.
But Sabalenka refused to resign, as she did her best to turn things around for the better. After Sabalenka won her first Grand Slam, Badosa said that her good friend definitely deserved that success. “As she always says, we are soul mates.
I think we are very similar personalities and I admire her a lot. She’s a fighter and she’s been through a lot, tough times, and she’s always fighting no matter what. We all remember how she started last year in Australia with service and she tried and tried and she never gave up, and she was incredibly rewarded.
I know that it was very important to her and it is a dream come true. And she was really happy because we’re really close and we’re going through, like, the same journey together. I think she totally deserves it,» Badosa told Arab News. The 25-year-old Badosa is also hoping to become a Grand Slam champion in the near future.