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The defending champion made her first appearance in New York since her controversial comment after losing the Roland Garros final to Gauff in June earlier this year. The Belarusian was poised for her maiden Paris title after winning the opening set in the final, only to watch Gauff orchestrate a stunning 6-7(5) 6-2 6-4 come-from-behind win to lift her second career Slam. Sabalenka, who made 70 unforced errors in the match, said in the press conference that Gauff won "not because she played incredibly, but because I made all of those mistakes" - comments that drew immense flak. However, Sabalenka later revealed that she wrote to Gauff seeking an apology for her "unprofessional" comments. "That was just completely unprofessional of me," Sabalenka told Eurosport Germany. "I let my emotions get the better of me. I absolutely regret what I said back then. You know, we all make mistakes. I'm just a human being who's still learning in life. I think we all have those days when we lose control. But what I also want to say is that I wrote to Coco afterward - not immediately, but recently." But the apology had little effect on the US crowd, who gave Sabalenka a frosty welcome onto Arthur Ashe Stadium for her clash against Rebeka Masarova.