Melbourne: The newly-crowned champion Aryna Sabalenka took the Australian Open women’s singles trophy also known as ‘Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup’, on a gondola tour through Melbourne’s botanical gardens on Sunday.
She stepped out on the town as a Grand Slam winner for the first time and took her trophy for a spin in front of one of the city’s most scenic backdrop.
The newly-crowned major winner took the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup on a tour of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, complete with a gondola ride.
Sabalenka posed for the cameras with both the trophy and a bottle of champagne and said that she was still living the dream less than 24 hours after coming from behind to defeat Elena Rybakina in a classic, three-set championship match inside Rod Laver Arena.
She received the championship trophy from Billie Jean King, whom she thanked for everything she’s done for women’s tennis.
“I still feel like I’m on another planet, trying to understand what’s just happened,” Sabalenka said on Sunday. “It’s the best morning of my life. It’s so beautiful.”
On Monday, Sabalenka will match her career-high ranking when she moves up to No.2 in the rankings. She finds herself 4,385 behind Swiatek.
–IANS