"You're not trying to be equals" - Aryna Sabalenka's coach explains why female players shouldn't 'empathize' with their opponents

Aryna Sabalenka's coach Jason Stacy recently explained why female players shouldn't ‘empathize’ with their opponents. The American highlighted that two players aren't ‘trying to be equals’ and spoke about the disadvantages of humanizing your opponent.

Sabalenka and Stacy have been working together for over seven years now. The duo first teamed up in 2018, with Stacy taking charge of the Belarusian’s fitness and performance, while Anton Dubrov looks after the technical aspects of her game.

Recently, Japan Stacy made an appearance on The Line Podcast and spoke about the way he and Aryna Sabalenka approach opponents. The American highlighted that they don't humanize the player they're competing against and spoke about the disadvantages of empathy, saying (at 57:00),

“We don't humanize the opponent. That's how I look at it. We don't humanize especially, not to get too, you know, whatever. Especially with the females. The female side because your superpower, which is a strength that is so beautiful and amazing, is empathy, you know, compared to like a male side of things. But again, your biggest strength could also be your biggest weakness. And you're in a competitive environment. That's not the best. You don't want to be empathizing with your opponent. You're not trying to be equals here. There's so many different layers, right?”

Stacy went on to add that he never looks at the draw during tournament, explained,

“So like for even from my perspective, it's funny because people always say, "Oh, who are you playing tomorrow?" I have no idea. I literally never look at the draw. I have no idea (who) we're playing.”

Aryna Sabalenka and Jason Stacy have enjoyed a strong partnership. Stacy has led the tennis star to four Grand Slam titles and the World No.1 rank over the course of the past seven years.

Aryna Sabalenka set to compete at the Atlanta Cup

Sabalenka at the WTA Finals 2025 (Image Source: Getty)

After a brief hiatus from tennis where she enjoyed a vacation to Maldives with her boyfriend, Aryna Sabalenka is now returning to sporting action. The 27-year-old is set to compete at the Atlanta Cup, an exhibition event scheduled to take place on Saturday, December 6 at the Gas South Arena.

Sabalenka will be joined at the event by fellow US Open champion Naomi Osaka, American tennis star Ben Shelton and Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios. The event will see Sabalenka and Osaka take on each other in a women's singles encounter, while Shelton and Kyrgios battle it out amongst themselves.