With engagement ring in place, Sabalenka cruised to opening Indian Wells win

The ring seemed to be as interesting as the result of Aryna Sabalenka’s opening match Friday at the BNP Paribas Open.

Sabalenka, the No. 1 player in the WTA rankings, easily dispatched qualifier Himeno Sakastsume on Stadium 1, 6-4, 6-2 in her opening match of the event. But it was the engagement ring on Sabalenka’s right ring finger that drew attention from fans and even one match official who specifically asked to see the ring before the match began.

“It’s very comfortable,” Sabalenka said with a smile when asked what it was like playing a match with the large diamond on her hand. “We double checked if there is a possibility to lose the diamond. There is not. So I was pretty confident wearing this ring. It feels comfy and shiny.”

Sabalenka and Brazilian businessman Georgios Frangulis became engaged earlier this week, and while Sabalenka said it wasn’t a complete surprise, Frangulis and her team managed to pull off at least a surprise in the timing of the proposal.

“Yeah, the whole team knew. My agent told me that I have a very important meeting for 15 minutes,” Sabalenka said. “Just put on something nice. She wasn’t pushing enough for me to put the makeup on, and I was super tired in the evening. I was, like, okay, I’m not going to do that. I’ll just wear jeans.”

More: What it’s like to be a ball kid at the BNP Paribas Open

With the ring on her right hand — it’s an eastern European thing compared to the left hand for engagement rings in this country — Sabalenka showed off the skills that make her the top seed in the Indian Wells event. A finalist in two of the last three years at the BNP Paribas Open, Sabalenka is still looking for her first title in Indian Wells and was a surprise loser in the 2025 finals, taking the first set but then losing the next two set to Mirra Andreeva.

As for the match itself, it was clear from the start that Sabalenka could overpower Sakatsume, with Sabalenka breaking Sakatsume’s serve in the first game of the match and then winning the second set at love.

But what Sakatsume lacked in firepower against Sabalenka, she made up for with precise forehands, volleys at the net and solid angles on passing shots. Still, when Sabalenka was able to pin Sakatsume to the baseline, Sabalenka just overpowered the Japanese qualifier with powerful ground strokes and big serves that are part of Sabalenka’s arsenal.

“I’m super happy with the level I played. I’m super happy to get this win,” Sabalenka said. “I haven’t played for a while since the Australian Open, and happy for the performance today.”

In fact, Sabalenka’s last match before Friday was the Australian Open finals on Feb. 1, when she dropped a three-set fight to Elena Rybakina.

But it wasn’t the Australian Open or her win against Sakatsume that was on the mind of Sabalenka or the media Friday. Instead, it was the proposal and the ring.

“I was crying half of the time, because I thought that I looked ugly, not prepared, and this is such a beautiful moment,” Sabalenka laughed. “I stopped everything, and I asked the videographer and the photographer to make sure that my face is not there, just the ring, and, I don’t know, side views and from the back, just so you guys wouldn’t be shocked by the way I looked.”

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Aryna Sabalenka’s engagement ring as big as win at BNP Paribas Open