Stephen A. Smith Is Facing Backlash For Female Tennis Comment

Sabalenka's candid fallout divides tennis world

Aryna Sabalenka's emotionally charged comments following her loss to Coco Gauff in the 2025 French Open final have ignited a heated debate among tennis professionals. After

Stephen A. Smith Is Facing Backlash For Female Tennis Comment

How Much Money ESPN Pays Stephen A. Smith (1:02) Stephen A. Smith isn't exactly a tennis expert, but he had an awful lot to say about Aryna Sabalenka this Thursday on "First Take." Sabalenka, the No. 1 ranked women's player in the world, lost the French Open final to Coco Gauff in a three-set thriller. Following her loss at Roland-Garros, she made some questionable remarks about her performance. "I think it was more windy. Also I think I was ove…

"They want the scoop" - Jimmy Connors blasts Aryna Sabalenka's critics amid backlash over Coco Gauff comments after French Open loss

Aryna Sabalenka had controversially suggested that Coco Gauff's win over her in the 2025 French Open women's singles final boiled down more to her own errors than the American's brilliance.

Jimmy Connors Has A Suggestion For Postmatch Interviews

Jimmy Connors and Brett Haber were discussing the French Open finals weekend, and the topic of Aryna Sabalenka‘s postmatch speech and comments came up. Sabalenka has come under fire for not being as gracious as we might expect after her French Open loss to Coco Gauff.  She talked about her terrible tennis on the podium and followed it up in the press conference by saying that Iga Swiatek would have beaten Gauff. Gauff handled the whole matter wi…

Jimmy Connors defends Aryna Sabalenka and calls for post-match interview changes - Tennis Tonic - News, Predictions, H2H, Live Scores, stats

Jimmy Connors has spoken out in defense of Aryna Sabalenka, suggesting that Grand Slam tournaments should allow players more time to process their emotions before addressing the media. His comments come after Sabalenka faced criticism for remarks she made following her French Open final loss to Coco Gauff. Sabalenka, who was visibly frustrated after the match, stated that her defeat was due to her own mistakes rather than Gauff’s brilliance. The…

Andrea Petkovic reacts to Aryna Sabalenka’s controversial comments about Coco Gauff

Andrea Petkovic has sought to defend Aryna Sabalenka’s controversial comments following the French Open final. Having lost in a three-set epic against Coco Gauff, the Belarusian was gracious in defeat, hugging her opponent and praising her on court. However, when she moved into the media room to do her post-match press conference, she made a comment which has not been received well by the masses. Claiming that Iga Swiatek would have won the fina…