Roddick questions on-court dance request put to Sabalenka at Roland-Garros

Former world No. 1 Andy Roddick has criticised a post-match request that saw Aryna Sabalenka asked to dance for the crowd at Roland-Garros following her fourth-round victory over Naomi Osaka on June 1, 2026. Sabalenka, the current women's world No. 1, defeated Osaka 7-5, 6-3 on Court Philippe-Chatrier to advance to the quarterfinals of the French Open.

The exchange occurred during the on-court interview, conducted by broadcaster and former player Fabrice Santoro, who asked Sabalenka to dance and requested that music be played. When Michael Jackson's "Thriller" came over the speakers, Santoro followed up by asking her to moonwalk. Sabalenka complied, though her initial hesitation was visible. Roddick addressed the episode on his podcast, "Served," stating: "I like him, but saying, 'Will you dance for us?' is just such a weird thing to ask. I don't like it. And then when she does it a little bit and it's kind of over, to then ask her to moonwalk. …I don't know. Maybe people loved it, and I might be in the minority." He added: "Props to her for doing it, but I just thought it was weird. I think that's such a strange thing to ask somebody to do in a professional setting."

Sabalenka, 28, enters the quarterfinals as a four-time Grand Slam singles champion. She claimed the Australian Open title in 2023 and 2024, and the U.S. Open in 2024 and 2025. The French Open title remains absent from her record. The dance exchange also carried a competitive subtext: Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic had engaged in an informal rivalry of post-match celebration dances across the tournament's early rounds. That thread ended when Djokovic was eliminated in the third round by 19-year-old Spaniard Joao Fonseca, who recovered from two sets down to win in five. Roddick won the single Grand Slam title of his career at the 2003 U.S. Open.

Sabalenka is scheduled to face No. 25 seed Diana Shnaider in the quarterfinals on Wednesday at 6:10 a.m. ET, with a first French Open title still her primary objective at Roland-Garros.