Aryna Sabalenka Breaks Down, Shades Elena Rybakina After WTA Finals Loss

Aryna Sabalenka fell just short of the biggest single payday in women’s tennis history, losing to Elena Rybakina in the WTA Finals on Saturday, November 8. After the match, cameras caught the player in tears while microphones picked up her trash talking her opponent. Sabalenka, 27, smashed her racket and receded to her chair after her defeat. Amid her frustration, she muttered in Russian, “Once a year even the stick shoots,” according to video shared on social media. The phrase is a Russian idiom that implies Sabalenka believes Rybakina’s success was a fluke, rather than a result of her skill.