Aryna Sabalenka has been fined $7,500 for the code violation she picked up during her US Open final loss to Elena Rybakina on 12 September, the third-largest sanction on the tournament’s published fine sheet.
The Belarusian, chasing a third straight title in New York, smashed a ball into the stands after dropping serve and drew the code violation from the chair umpire. Rybakina went on to close out a 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 win that ended the three-peat bid and delivered the Kazakh her third career major.
The frustration did not end at the last point. Sabalenka sat on her bench, smashed her racket at her chair and told a camera operator filming her at close range to “f–k off”. Rybakina had climbed to the world No. 1 spot by reaching the semi-finals, ending Sabalenka’s 99-week run at the top of the WTA rankings.
Sabalenka was asked about the outburst at her post-match press conference.
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“It’s really tough to control your emotions when you lose in the final of the Grand Slam and when you were trying to go for three-peat,” she said.
“I just wanted to let it go, because if I would hold it inside, right now or here or there on the court, I wouldn’t be able to say a word, or I would just go not really nice over there.”
Williams sisters left without paying
Venus and Serena Williams were the tournament’s other headline discipline story, on the opposite side of the ledger. The sisters lost their opening women’s doubles round to Maya Joint and Hao-Ching Chan in three sets on Friday 4 September, then left Arthur Ashe Stadium without appearing at the mandatory post-match press session.
The USTA opted not to fine them, and no injury reason had been given for the absence. Grand Slam players typically face sanctions of up to $50,000 for skipping their media obligations, and the exemption drew immediate criticism online, with fans contrasting the treatment with Novak Djokovic’s fine after his 2020 US Open default for hitting a line judge with a ball.
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Earlier in the tournament, Serena had partnered Carlos Alcaraz in the revamped mixed doubles event as a wild-card pair, beating Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool in the first round before losing to Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli in the quarter-final. Venus lost her opening singles match to Sofia Kenin in a first-round contest that finished after 2am, extending her singles losing streak to 15.
$20,000 for a 17-minute retirement topped the sheet
The largest fine of the 2026 US Open went to Argentine teenager Luisina Giovannini, who was charged $20,000 after retiring from her qualifying match against Lucia Bronzetti of Italy after just 17 minutes on 24 August. The 19-year-old, ranked No. 198 in the world, had lost the opening five games and told the chair umpire she could not continue with an injury; the sanction wiped out more than 60 per cent of her $32,000 qualifying prize and was issued under Grand Slam rules requiring a professional performance standard.
France’s Corentin Moutet was the second most heavily fined player at $10,000, with Sabalenka’s $7,500 sanction sitting third on the list.
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