Daily Dose of Social Media: Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka star in Doha Open ad, Rafael Nadal plays football
Tennis News
Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek stole the spotlight in a new Doha Open ad, featuring the defending champion and the world No. 1, which we review in a new Daily Dose of Social Media.
Meanwhile, Rafael Nadal shared photos playing football with members of the Rafa Nadal Academy team. On the other hand, Zhang Zhizhen debuted a new look with a striking hair colour, while the stars of the Dallas Open took part in a fun game, featuring Frances Tiafoe, Ben Shelton, and others.
Rafael Nadal plays football with members of the Rafa Nadal Academy
The former world No. 1 and all-time Roland Garros title leader posted on Instagram, showing himself playing football alongside members of his academy and some friends, enjoying his retirement from professional tennis.
The Spaniard also tagged LaLiga’s account and left a message: "Stay tuned, @laliga, there's some talent here 😅."
Rafa, a devoted Real Madrid fan, has always acknowledged his passion for football. In his childhood, he stood out for his talent in the sport, even playing in the youth ranks of Manacor.
Shapovalov's funny moment at the ATP 500 in Dallas
The Canadian, who defeated Taylor Fritz in the round of 16 by 2-6, 6-3, 7-6, was involved in one of the day's bloopers. After one of the LED lights at the back of the court malfunctioned, the former world No. 10 attempted to fix it by hitting the faulty panel with the ball and then with the handle of his racket.
The incident amused the crowd and delivered one of the funniest moments of the 2025 ATP Tour so far—alongside showcasing Shapovalov's "repair skills." The Canadian will face Tomas Machac in the quarterfinals.
Denis Shapovalov est vraiment le bourrin qu'il croit être. 😂pic.twitter.com/YOAxpcoplO
— Tennis Legend (@TennisLegende) February 7, 2025
Zhang Zhizhen debuts a striking new hairstyle
Zhang Zhizhen surprised the internet with a bold new look. He showcased his fresh pink-dyed haircut, matching his headband, during the ATP 500 ABN AMRO Open. However, his on-court luck didn’t match his style, as he lost in the first round to Russia’s Andrey Rublev, 6-3, 6-4. The world No. 52 will now set his sights on the ATP 500 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
On valide la nouvelle coupe de cheveux de Zhizhen Zhang ? 🥶🌸 pic.twitter.com/IbA2NbWzNI
— DRX (@drxtennis) February 4, 2025
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Holger Rune feature in a Tennis TV reel
Both players answered a series of questions about aspects of tennis they believe should or shouldn't continue in 2025. Among the topics discussed were mind games against opponents, which Rune supported. Both players agreed on eating bananas during matches, as they help restore energy.
Tsitsipas also voiced his support for the one-handed backhand, adding that more players should adopt it. Regarding underarm serves, the Greek admitted he likes them, while Rune expressed disapproval. The former owrld No. 3 recently lost against Mattia Belluci on quarterfinals of Rotterdam Open.
Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka star in Doha Open ad
The world No. 1 and No. 2 have arrived in Doha ahead of the Doha Open. The two top players took part in a fun photoshoot and faced off on a mini tennis court for a promotional campaign in Qatar.
Both are aiming to claim the title—Sabalenka looking to extend her lead at the top, while Swiatek fights to stay in the race for the No. 1 ranking.
Belinda Bencic’s phone rings mid-match
During the Abu Dhabi Open semi-final between Rybakina and Bencic, the Swiss player’s phone suddenly started ringing, creating a peculiar moment. Bencic immediately ran to turn it off so the match could continue, drawing laughter from the crowd.
Despite the distraction, Bencic defeated top seed Rybakina – first seed of the tournament and defending champion 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, securing her place in the final, where she will face Ashlyn Kruger for the title in Abu Dhabi.
Belinda Bencic's phone went off during her match against Rybakina in Abu Dhabi 😂 pic.twitter.com/CwzpXSQrgM
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) February 7, 2025
Sabalenka spends a workday with her sister
Aryna Sabalenka shared a series of Instagram photos showing her sister accompanying her for a day in the life of a professional tennis player.
The world No. 1’s sister appeared a bit shy, covering her face in some of the pictures.
The 3-time Grand Slam champion is now preparing for the Doha Open with her sister by her side, where she will be the first seed
Dallas Open players attempt to draw Dallas Cowboys logo
The tournament organised an activity where participants were asked to draw the logo of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys from memory before revealing their results.
Denis Shapovalov delivered a hilarious moment, admitting he had no idea what the logo looked like since he doesn’t watch American football.
Meanwhile, the American players showed more familiarity and drew relatively accurate versions of the Dallas Cowboys logo.
Novak Djokovic attends Juventus match
The former world No. 1 was at the Juventus Stadium to watch his compatriot Dusan Vlahovic’s team claim victory, with the Serbian striker scoring a goal. Djokovic shared the moment on social media as he celebrated the goal.
Djokovic will return to Qatar for the ATP 500 Qatar ExxonMobil Open, where he will be the seventh seed. The Serbian has already won the tournament in 2016 and 2017.
The event will also feature several top-10 players, including Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and Daniil Medvedev, and boasts one of the highest prize pools among ATP 500 tournaments.
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- Bencic is all business right now. If Rybakina is the ice queen, then Bencic is Antarctica—colder, sharper, and seemingly unstoppable. 🔥❄️MrAndreeva07-02-2025
- Creepy.
mandoist07-02-2025 - Ouch!!mandoist07-02-2025
- they need to change the rules on the WTA to limit wildcards more effectively like they have on the ATPSososo06-02-2025
- This is just getting beyond ridiculous!! Not to mention unsportsmanlike and unfair to serious up & coming contenders.mandoist06-02-2025
- No, writer, we were not "stunned". If you knew your business you would have been aware of her statement last weekend re: her knee and retirement. The main take-away here is that Simona went out on her own terms. She surely wanted to play again after WTA & ITIA screwed her out of her final productive seasons. Personally, I believed she was going to make this announcement when I saw the President and his family in their box seats. Good for Simone -- now she can move on to other things as she said she would.mandoist04-02-2025
- It sounds seriously absurd that in Davis Cup, (unlike Grand Slams such as the Aus Open), medical time outs off court with the medical staff are not allowed?? I mean, if this was an Aus Open match, and the same thing happened to Gurin then, he would have been able to go off court for official medical time out and make an informed decision whether to resume the match or retire. How come such conditions do not apply in Davis Cup?? I mean, there with Davis Cup, it is even more like a soccer match or basketball game in that teams are playing. And so as with those, it ought to be the case in tennis that if a player needs serious medical time out, then one of the other team mates ought to substitute and each team needs to have stand-ins or understudies in case substitution is needed which will be rare but as we can see here, this kind of circumstance fits. But even if the teams do not go down the road of subbing other team mates in, in case of a health issue like the one which played out here, at least, as in the Aus Open and other Grand Slams, there ought to be time-outs with the health professionals and at the conclusion of these time-outs, the particular decision that has been reached between them and the player needs to be taken on board by the umpire. PERIOD.
Sueiyin04-02-2025 - "If Novak did this, he would be defaulted for life. WTF." 🤣 WTF sounds like What Tennis Fury?! What Tennis Flurry??! I mean, se-rious-ly, it was actually the unfairness of the silly umpire's decision that is the issue here! Further, how come it was Gurin & his team who got disqualified? If this kind of thing happens in soccer, it would be the other guy getting the yellow or red card! Because after all, it was the Belgian who's foul it was so why then penalize the opponents for something they didn't instigate? Fouls in both basketball and soccer are read as a hinderance that has been caused by the player who INITIALLY instigated the hinderance. In this case, okay, it is tennis, but while the precise rules are different to either soccer or basketball, the same type of recognition as to whoever instigates a hinderance should apply, and in this case, it was the Belgian player.Sueiyin04-02-2025
- Medvedev talking to his form here. "Some actual deep problem." 🤣😂🤣MrAndreeva03-02-2025
- "Hopefully, the team around her will help... " Actually, the lack thereof seems to have been part of the problem(s). Another possibility is that, while dealing with legitimate surgeries, withdrawing, and otherwise passing on events, the competition has stepped-up in intensity while she was busy with traveling, photo shoots, and TV commercials.mandoist03-02-2025
