From fierce rivals to being close friends! Amid all the hardcore competitions throughout the year, pure respect and admiration have now unknowingly brought Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek closer to each other. These two have been dominating the women’s tennis world in the last few years, so seeing them sharing a moment of camaraderie in the middle of their packed schedules is always a bliss to watch for all tennis fans. Both WTA stars are currently in Abu Dhabi, taking part in the World Tennis League. Recently, Swiatek and Sabalenka were spotted practicing together at the venue. They even shared a glimpse of that moment on social media.

Aryna Sabalenka is presenting Team Hawks at the World Tennis League, while Iga Swiatek is playing for the Team Eagles. Both these players were recently spotted hugging each other after a doubles match at the tournament.

Then on Sunday, Sabalenka even shared a picture on her IG stories where she was spotted hitting the ground with Iga Swiatek. They looked quite happy after getting the chance to play with each other during the practice session and Aryna Sabalenka even captioned that post with, “Great practice with @iga.swiatek.”

After Sabalenka, now even Iga Swiatek shared that moment of camaraderie with the Belarusian in her IG stories. She just dropped a “😎” in the captions. However, this isn’t the only time in this season when we saw them showing their love and support for each other. For example, when numerous tennis stars were busy taking a jibe at Iga Swiatek for the recent doping controversy, Aryna Sabalenka took a slightly different stand on this topic.

Recently, when she asked to comment on Swiatek’s doping saga, Sabalenka said, “People are really used to overreacting before figuring stuff out, so I don’t want to leave any comments. I believe in clean sport and nothing else I can add.” Let’s take a look at some other similar moments where both these tennis stars were reflecting on their unique chemistry amid intense rivalry.

Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka sheds light on their relationship

Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka have faced each other 12 times in their careers! Although the Pole currently leads the H2H record with an 8-4 margin, it has always been a magical show of some extraordinary tennis on each of those occasions. Fans loved watching these two in action and perhaps both players have now become each other’s favorite opponents. Now, why are we saying this, though?

Well, previously during an interview, Iga Swiatek claimed, “For sure, when we play against each other, I feel like it’s a challenge. I think it’s also pushing me to become a better and better player, so I think we both kind of need each other to grow.” Aryna Sabalenka shared a similar thought on Swiatek in one of her interviews. The current world number one said, “I think that’s amazing the rivalry we are having with Iga. She definitely motivates me a lot to get better, and I think I improve so many things just because of her.”

What do other people think about their bonding, though? Well, according to the tennis insider, Joanna Sakowicz-Kostecka, “I understand that there is some made-up, media conflict between them. And the truth is that even if there is no great friendship, Iga and Aryna respect each other a lot.” Even Iga Swiatek’s father, Tomasz Swiatek, once spoke about his daughter’s relationship with one of her fiercest rivals, Aryna Sabalenka.

He said, “We never talked about it, but I’m sure they respect each other as players. It’s also not like all these girls are sitting together in the locker room and socializing there.” What are your thoughts on the friendship of Swiatek and Sabalenka in the middle of a very highly competitive environment?