Aryna Sabalenka denied claims she’s a hypocrite after wearing £76,000 worth of jewellery during her opening French Open victory just days after protesting for bigger prize money.
The world number one breezed past Spaniard Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 6-4, 6-2 wearing two necklaces and matching earrings made up of 15.6 carat diamonds and 136.5 carat garnets.
Sabalenka’s bling by New York designer Material Good was worth £1,000 more than her opponent Bouzas Maneiro earned for her first-round exit.
The four-time Grand Slam winner wore the same necklaces and earrings during her pre-tournament press conference, which she cut short after 15 minutes as part of demands for bigger prize money.
The Belarusian was one of 20 of the sport’s top stars were protesting against the 15 per cent share of the revenue they get at the French Open as they demand for 22 per cent, worth another £25million.
The current prize pot is £53m, with the winners pocketing £2.4m each. Sabalenka earned more than £11million in prize money in 2025, the most of any women’s player in history breaking Serena Williams’ previous record of £9.2m from 2013.
Aryna Sabalenka says she isn’t a hypocrite despite wearing £76,000 in jewellery
She had asked for players at the French open to be paid more while furnishing herself with lavish ornaments
‘I don’t really see how it can be possible to cross these two completely different worlds,’ said Sabalenka. ‘As I said before, the prize money, it’s not about me at all. It’s just fighting for players, lower-ranked players who are really struggling to survive in this tennis world.
‘It has nothing to do with me that I’m fighting for the prize money. Everyone knows that I’m okay. It’s just that we are fighting for fair percentage out of the revenues, and also for the lower-ranked players, players coming back after injuries, next generation to be more comfortable coming into the top 10. It’s not about me.’
Daily Mail Sport revealed this week that Sabalenka’s custom jewellery at Roland Garros could even rack up to more than £100,000 if she chooses to wear a third matching necklace in the set, worth £34,000.
The swanky set is packed with another 8.6ct of diamonds and 81.6ct of garnets but Sabalenka admitted after her victory that would have been ‘too much’.
She also revealed her bulky fiance Georgios Frangulis is keeping the jewels safe. ‘He’s kind of like my security,’ she smiled. ‘I have my team. I have Jason (Stacy, her performance coach) and my physio who does Jujitsu, so I feel pretty secure walking around. If I go somewhere, I don’t go alone.’
Sabalenka is the face of the New York brand and also wore their jewellery at the Australian Open in January and plans to do so in all Grand Slams this year.
Wimbledon sources on Tuesday gave the green light for Sabalenka to don her bling on the grass at the All England Club in June.
