Tennis, a battleground of grit, hunger, and mind games, played out another unforgettable chapter on the 27-foot-wide stage yesterday. The crowd watched breathlessly as the American ace, Coco Gauff, out-dueled Aryna Sabalenka in the ‘City of Love’, snatching silverware and seizing glory. In a sport where one rises and the other fades into the shadows of stats and memory, questions linger. Did the defeated warrior lack the grace that elevates individual competition? As emotions spilled post-match, one voice cut through: Rennae Stubbs, former coach of the great Serena Williams, didn’t hold back, shedding sharp light on Sabalenka’s post-defeat conduct and calling into question the true meaning of ‘sportsmanship’. Wondering what she said?
Last night, Coco Gauff stormed back from a set down to clinch her second GS singles title, outlasting top seed Aryna Sabalenka 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-4 in a gripping French Open final. 70 unforced errors plagued Sabalenka’s game, significantly outweighing her 37 winners, highlighting her struggle with external factors. Specifically, the wind, Gauff’s inspired play, and the high stakes.
But the Paris wind told its wild tale! Sabalenka didn’t hold back post-match, her frustration boiling over. “It felt like a joke, honestly, like somebody from above was just staying there laughing, saying ‘let’s see if you can handle this’,” Aryna vented. “She won the match not because she played incredible, just because I made all of those mistakes.” Those words didn’t go unnoticed, especially by Rennae Stubbs, always a sharp shooter when it comes to tennis and truth.
As the dust settled on ‘Court Philippe-Chatrier’ Aryna Sabalenka’s raw post-match comments sparked a fire, and Rennae Stubbs didn’t hold back. The 54-year-old Aussie came out swinging with her own volley of truth. “ugh….the tennis was not that bad. You made a bazillion unforced errors because you’re playing against the fastest players in the world who is as gutsy as hell and had better composure then you!! but to say it was horrible…..ugh!!!! Damn that was rude. I said what I said,” Stubbs wrote, throwing shade without blinking.
ugh….the tennis was not that bad. You made a bazillion unforced errors because youre playing against the fastest players in the world who is as gutsy as hell and had better composure then u!! but to say it was horrible…..ugh!!!! Damn that was rude. I said what I said.
— Rennae Stubbs (@rennaestubbs) June 7, 2025
She doubled down on her defense of Gauff, refusing to let Aryna’s excuses cloud the reality of the match. “For the people out there saying well it’s cause Sabalenka made 70 UF errors. The reason she made so many, is because she’s is playing the best defender & athlete in the game. On top of Cocos spins on her forehand & her power on her BH & ability to make ONE MORE BALL !” she added.
Stubbs also highlighted what mattered most on clay: resilience and control. “It was windy and difficulty conditions and Coco handled it better cause she made more balls! Again, that’s clay and tennis. The semis indoors helped Sabalenka hit her strokes and serve with no wind. Today, the better competitor won.”
The Aussie veteran also didn’t miss Sabalenka’s unraveling on court either. “It’s clay and clay is about controlled aggression. And Coco used that to her advantage and didn’t panic and her composure won her that match. She served well under pressure and Sabalenka pressed WAY too much, because she knew it would come back and it got to her and she panicked.”
And Coco? After heartbreaks in Madrid and Rome, the French Open trophy tasted like redemption. The clay didn’t just test her game: it crowned her grit.
Coco Gauff reflects on fulfilling her Paris clay dream
Coco Gauff, the fearless 21-year-old from America, forged in Florida’s heat, rose from a set down to etch her name into tennis history on Saturday. With ice in her veins and fire in her heart, she stormed past Aryna Sabalenka, 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-4, to seize her maiden Roland Garros crown.
In doing so, she became the 1st American, man or woman, since Serena Williams in 2015 to lift the Roland Garros trophy. A stage this grand hadn’t seen a No. 1 vs. No. 2 clash since 2013. Back then, Williams reigned. This time, Gauff thrived as the underdog at Parisian clay.
It wasn’t easy. “It was tough,” she admitted later. “I don’t think either of us were playing great, but I knew as soon as I stepped on the court and I felt that it was windy that it was going to be one of those matches.” But grit does what talent can’t when the storm rolls in, and Gauff braved it with poise!
“I think this [Grand Slam] win was harder than the first because you don’t want to get satisfied with just that one. Three finals… I guess I got the most important win – that’s all that matters,” she echoed.
This wasn’t just a win, though. It was a message. Coco didn’t wait for destiny, she built it. She dreamed of clay, and now she rules it. The legacy begins here. Not in Madrid, not in Rome, In Paris!
The post Aryna Sabalenka Branded ‘Rude’ as Serena Williams’ Ex-Coach Backs Coco Gauff Amid French Open Controversy appeared first on EssentiallySports.