Sabalenka, Gauff back 'rage rooms' for players to blow off steam

INDIAN WELLS, Calif., March 3 : Aryna Sabalenka likes the idea of 'rage rooms' at tournaments where players can vent their frustrations away from the cameras, though the world number one said there would be nothing left to destroy after she uses it.

Sabalenka's comments came after the ATX Open in Austin, Texas launched a rage room in response to Coco Gauff's racket-smashing incident at the Australian Open, where the American was unaware her frustrations at losing in the quarter-finals were being broadcast worldwide.

Sabalenka, who has had her own moments of frustration, was enthusiastic about the concept.

"Oh, that's cool, let's do that," she told reporters on Tuesday in the buildup to the Indian Wells tournament. "But I think after me there will be nothing to destroy. 

"I would be there the whole day."

When asked about the rage room concept in Austin, Gauff was stunned to learn it was not an AI-generated fake.

"That was real? I thought it was an AI, my mom sent it to me, and I told her it was AI," she said. "She believes so many AI things."

Gauff's incident at Melbourne Park sparked debate about player privacy at tournaments, with Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek among those calling for greater protections for players away from the cameras.

The 21-year-old American was on board with the rage room idea. 

"For sure it was inspired by me, I guess. So I'll take it nicely," she said.

"If I felt like I needed to let go some frustration, I would definitely be in the rage room," she said, adding that breaking plates would be probably more fun than smashing a racquet.