Aryna Sabalenka, the top-ranked player in women’s tennis, credits her new puppy, Ash, with providing “mental health support” as she continues to rack up victories. Sabalenka brought her Cavalier King Charles Spaniel to a post-match interview on the Tennis Channel following her round-of-16 victory over Naomi Osaka on Wednesday at the BNP Paribas Open, winning 6-2, 6-4.
A Calming Influence
“I feel like I’m much more settled, calm, more in control,” Sabalenka said while Tennis Channel commentators held and petted her dog. “Whenever I feel like going crazy on my team, I just pet Ash and I feel better.” Sabalenka, who has a history of emotional, on-court outbursts, introduced Ash in a social media post last week as a “new addition” to Team Tiger, her support team of coaches, trainers, and other staff.
The Ash Story
Sabalenka said she had a deal with coach Anton Dubrov that if she won last year’s U.S. Open, she would get a dog. She also considered getting a Dachshund but decided on a spaniel because “my mom had a spaniel and I loved that dog,” adding that spaniels make good “family dogs” that are “super attached to their owners, super chill, super cute, super cuddly.” She wanted her dog’s name to be related somehow to New York and the U.S. Open. “Apple doesn’t sound right,” she said, so she went with Ash as a nod to American tennis great and civil rights activist Arthur Ashe, after whom the main U.S. Open stadium court is named. Sabalenka recently announced her engagement to Brazilian businessman Georgios Frangulis.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://apnews.com/article/aryna-sabalenka-dog-ash-spaniel-18bdd4ddc769cb7ab5b63026df3418a2