Aryna Sabalenka sends WTA Finals ‘message’ amid Saudi Arabia concerns

Aryna Sabalenka has revealed she does not have “any issues” playing in Saudi Arabia amid criticism of the WTA’s decision to stage the WTA Finals in the country.
Action at the WTA Finals in Riyadh will begin on Saturday, with this being the first of three years that the year-end championships will be staged in the city.
The decision to host the Finals in Saudi Arabia was confirmed in April after months of speculation and has repeatedly attracted criticism.
High-profile critics, including WTA legends Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert, and human rights groups have regularly cited concerns regarding the nation’s treatment of women and LGBTQ+ individuals.
Sabalenka, the current world No 1, has previously played an exhibition in the country against Ons Jabeur and will contest the first singles match of the championships against Zheng Qinwen.
And, speaking ahead of action, the Belarusian revealed she was “really happy” to be playing in Saudi Arabia and be a part of “some sort of history”.
She said: “I’ve been here with an exhibition match with Ons. I saw everything here is quite chill.
“Me personally, I don’t have any issues playing here. I think it’s really important to bring tennis all around the world and to inspire the young generation.
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“The effort they put into women’s sport here is incredible. I’m really impressed. I’m really happy to be here and to be part of I would say some sort of history here.
“I would say this country put huge effort on bringing sport events here. Overall I would say improving quality of women’s life here.
“I’m really happy we’re part of it. I think that’s great that we are here and we inspiring young generation here.
“I mean, we are safe. We’re having great time. It’s a beautiful city – yeah, that’s basically my message.”
Sabalenka is the favourite for the title in Riyadh, having won the Cincinnati Open, US Open, and Wuhan Open across the past three months.
The world No 1 begins her campaign against seventh seed Qinwen before further group stage matches against fourth seed Jasmine Paolini and fifth seed Elena Rybakina.
This will not be the first tennis event to be held in Saudi Arabia, with the ATP NextGen Finals taking place in Jeddah last December, and set to return to the city at the end of the season.
Last month saw the likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal headline the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadh, while it is rumoured that a Masters 1000 event will one day be held in the nation.
Other sports such as football and boxing have also turned to Saudia Arabia frequently in recent years despite human rights concerns.
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