This is what Sabalenka did on her double date with Novak Djokovic
After winning her second consecutive US Open title, Aryna Sabalenka went to her happy place, Greece, for some R&R.
And while she was there, she spent a bit of quality time with another pretty good tennis player: 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic.
Alongside their significant others, Georgios Frangulis and Jelena Djokovic, the foursome enjoyed dinner in Athens. And, naturally, they played some tennis.
"He was really competitive, and he was screaming," the World No. 1 said. "But I won a lot of points against him, for the record. I hope he's gonna confirm that. But yeah, we went for dinner. We practiced a couple of times. I hope I was a great hitting partner. So far, he's winning in Shanghai. I guess it was a good one. I really hope he goes all the way. He's gonna win the tournament, and I'm gonna say it was all me.
"But yeah, we had a fun time in Greece. I love them, him and Jelena. He's always open to giving me advice. We had so much fun."
Djokovic has been winning in Shanghai, and Sabalenka followed suit at the Dongfeng Voyah · Wuhan Open. Playing in her first match since the US Open, the World No. 1 defeated Rebecca Sramkova 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 to improve to 18-0 all-time in Wuhan, where she is a three-time defending champion dating back to 2018. (The tournament wasn't held between 2020-23.)
Sabalenka arrived early for this tournament -- one of the perks of withdrawing from last week's China Open in Beijing -- and prepared herself for the conditions in Wuhan, where it's been brutally humid.
"Honestly, I thought this year that the US Open was quite humid, but when I came here, I realized the US Open was not humid at all," Sabalenka told reporters in her post-match press conference. "The humidity is insane, and conditions are incredibly tough. I did a great preparation in Greece, and I came here four or five days [early] to prepare for these conditions. ... I think I'm ready."
Sabalenka will play 16th seed Liudmila Samsonova in the Round of 16.