Aryna Sabalenka debuts engagement ring during Indian Wells win

INDIAN WELLS – Aryna Sabalenka’s performance in a 6-4, 6-2 second-round win over Japan’s Himeno Sakatsume was not the only thing that dazzled at Indian Wells on March 6, with the world No. 1 also showing off her shiny new engagement ring.

The 27-year-old sported the striking oval-cut diamond ring for the first time in competition after getting engaged to Georgios Frangulis on March 3.

“It feels super comfortable and shiny,” she told reporters.

“We double-checked if there was a possibility to lose the diamond and there was none. I was pretty confident wearing it, hoping it might even distract my opponent.”

Sabalenka, who has made the final of the WTA 1000 event twice in the last three years, said that while the proposal came as a complete surprise to her, the entire team were in on the engagement secret.

“I saw Georgios and I was crying half of the time, because I thought that I looked ugly, not prepared, and this is such a beautiful moment,” she said.

“I stopped everything and I asked the videographer and the photographer to make sure that my face was not (in the pictures), just the ring, and side views and from the back, just so you guys wouldn’t be shocked by the way I looked.

“But it was a beautiful moment.”

Sabalenka was asked what she has learnt about Frangulis, the chief executive of global health-food brand Oakberry, and what he has learnt about her since they began dating in 2024.

“What I have learnt about him? He likes Oakberry a lot,” the four-time Grand Slam champion said. “What he has learnt about me? That I’m crazy,” she added with a laugh.

In the men’s draw, world No. 2 Jannik Sinner overwhelmed Czech qualifier Dalibor Svrcina 6-1, 6-1 on March 6 to launch his bid for a first Indian Wells hard-court crown.

Sinner, back in the California desert after missing the 2025 edition serving a drugs suspension, controlled every aspect of the 64-minute contest in which he faced just one break point.

After Svrcina held serve for 1-1 in the first set, Sinner won nine straight games before Svrcina managed another hold. The Czech fought valiantly to force Sinner to serve it out, saving three match points in the final game before Sinner closed it with one more service break.

It was an auspicious start to a tournament in which the four-time Grand Slam champion’s best runs ended in semi-final defeats by Carlos Alcaraz. In 2026, Sinner cannot meet top-seeded Alcaraz – or third-seeded five-time champion Novak Djokovic – until the final.

“I feel mentally I’m in a good place,” said Sinner, who lost to Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Australian Open and was surprised by Jakub Mensik in the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open in February.

“I’m calm, I’m relaxed. But I’m also very happy to compete. We did a lot of work. Many, many hours on court. Many hours in the gym. I’m trying to get a little bit stronger.”

Meanwhile, Hungarian tennis player Panna Udvardy said she received messages threatening harm to her family unless she deliberately lost a match at a tournament in Turkey.

Udvardy said in a March 6 social media post that threats came during the Antalya Challenger event and she alerted the WTA. Her parents contacted the Turkish consulate and three officers accompanied her to the match.

“I was told that similar threats have recently happened to other players and that they believe personal information may have leaked from the WTA database, which is currently being investigated,” the 27-year-old wrote. REUTERS, AFP