Aryna Sabalenka shared a very interesting anecdote during her appearance on the Jay Shetty Podcast as the Belarusian claims she shut down a Maria Sharapova comparison when she was just nine or 10.
When Sabalenka first came to the Tour, it didn't take long before she started making some notable results and establishing herself as one of the most promising players. But there was another thing she was recognizable for - her very loud grunting on the court.
Anyone familiar with tennis knows that Sharapova's grunting was quite something. And according to the current top-ranked player in the women's game, someone compared her to the Russian tennis icon when she was just a little girl.
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Sabalenka recalls being compared to Sharapova: No, I'm future Sabalenka
"This story is not like I remember that, but I think it perfectly shows my personality when I was a kid, and someone came to me because I was grunting while hitting the ball, and someone came to me calling me Sharapova, and I looked at the person, saying like, 'No, I'm future Sabalenka.' You know, I was a kid, I was like what, nine or 10, and saying that I was just like when my mom told me the story, I kind of like was proud of myself," the world No. 1 recalled on the Jay Shetty Podcast.
If you can recall, Sharapova very directly and bluntly shut down critics surrounding her loud grunting in one of her interviews.
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"Tennis is an individual sport and I'm an individual player. If they have to fine me, go ahead, because I'd rather get fined than lose a match because I had to stop grunting. I've done this ever since I started playing tennis and I'm not going to change," she said in one of her interviews.
Meanwhile, after winning this past US Open, Sabalenka came one Grand Slam title away from equaling Sharapova's five Major wins.
