Aryna Sabalenka Apologizes for 'Terrible' Play in Loss to Coco Gauff at Roland-Garros

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka apologized to her team for what she called a "terrible final" on her part after losing in the final at Roland-Garros on Sunday against Coco Gauff.

The score certainly doesn't reflect that, as Sabalenka lost a tough three-set match to the World's No. 2 player: 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4.

Sabalenka made sure to congratulate Gauff, though, for her second Grand Slam.

The 27-year-old, who was looking for her fourth-ever Grand Slam singles victory, continued to provide a blunt assessment of her play afterward.

To her point, Sabalenka made 70 unforced errors to Gauff's 30, and that's obviously not a recipe for victory.

But it speaks to her resolve and perseverance that she was in the match until the very end despite (a) losing a 4-1 lead in the first set and (b) falling behind early in the third set before rallying back to tie it at three games apiece.

She's capable of far better play, of course, as evidenced by her performance in previous Grand Slam singles finals. Sabalenka is a three-time champion, having won the Australian Open in 2023 and 2024 and the U.S. Open in 2024. She also made the finals of the 2023 U.S. Open (losing to Gauff) and this year's Australian Open.

This one will certainly sting for Sabalenka, especially after a blistering start that made it seem a potential dominant straight-set victory was in the works. However, she has a chance to rebound in a major shortly with Wimbledon beginning on June 30.