World No.1 tennis star Aryna Sabalenka has broken her silence after launching a racket towards a ball kid in an angry outburst during a match.

The incident occurred during Sabalenka’s 6-2 4-6 6-7 defeat to world No.6 Jessica Pegula in the semi-finals of the Wuhan Open in China on Saturday.

After losing a vital point at 5-5 in the third set, Sabalenka threw her racket towards her bench in frustration, close to where a ball kid was standing.

Sabalenka’s racket narrowly missed both the ball kid and a cameraman, as it collided with the bench and bounced back towards the court.

The Belarusian likely would have been defaulted from the match had the racket struck either – but she avoided disqualification from the tournament.

Sabalenka has now spoken out for the first time since her defeat to

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