A former US Open champion has criticised ESPN for showing ‘unnecessary’ and ‘insensitive’ footage of Aryna Sabalenka after her Flushing Meadows triumph on Saturday. Sabalenka overcame the devastation of losing last year’s final against Coco Gauff by defeating Jessica Pegula in this year’s showdown.

Sabalenka became a three-time Grand Slam champion with a 7-5 7-5 victory over American home favourite Pegula. The Belarusian’s triumph comes 12 months after she was defeated by another American in Gauff.

After that defeat in 2023, Sabalenka returned backstage to the gym and took her frustration out on her racket. She withdrew it from her holdall before repeatedly smashing it against the floor.

Noticing she was still on camera, Sabalenka stopped and continued walking to her changing room. ESPN replayed the footage after the 26-year-old defeated Pegula on the Arthur Ashe Stadium court on Saturday, but that did not go down well with some viewers.

Paul McNamee, a former US Open doubles champion, wrote on X: “Not impressed by ESPN showing Sabalenka smashing her racquet in the gym after last year’s loss in the final… unnecessary, insensitive and as for timing? … yikes.”

Sabalenka insisted she was the “happiest person alive” following her victory. She admitted that her success was extra special due to her previous defeats in New York. The two-time Australian Open champion lost successive semi-finals in the two years before her defeat by Gauff.

“I’m speechless. I remember all the tough losses here,” Sabalenka said on court. “They say you’re going to see the reason later. I see the reason right now.

“That’s why it’s very special, because no matter what, every time I was coming back stronger and I was learning. I never gave up on this dream.”

Sabalenka has endured a tough year and has reflected that she should have taken a break from playing after her former boyfriend Konstantin Koltsov died in March. She struggled with a stomach bug at the French Open and then withdrew from Wimbledon due to injury.

An enforced break due to that shoulder problem allowed Sabalenka time to refresh and she looked back to her best at the US Open. She dedicated her victory to her family, adding: “Every time I see my name on that trophy, I’m so proud of myself.

“I’m proud of my family that they never gave up on my dream and that they were doing everything they could to keep me going. I had this opportunity in life so it really means a lot. It has always been my dream.”