- Aryna Sabalenka was shocked to see her name on the trophy just moments after her Australian Open win.
- A behind-the-scenes video from this year's Grand Slam Down Under reveals how the magic happens.
Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka went straight from Rod Laver Arena to a TV set after winning her first-ever Grand Slam.
And, of course, she brought her flashy new hardware with her.
Several minutes into her sit-down interview with Australian outlet Nine Wide World of Sports, the 24-year-old Belarusian superstar made an exciting discovery: Her name was already etched into the silver base of the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup.
"I'm super happy right now to break this wall and to — Oh my God, it already has my name!" Sabalenka said, interrupting herself mid-interview and placing a hand to her face in disbelief.
The crowd outside of the stadium erupted into cheers.
"This is unbelievable!" she added with a huge grin. "Oh my God. With all these stars!"
Though Sabalenka apparently hadn't noticed until that moment, her trophy had been engraved with her name and the year of her victory from the very first moment it was placed in her hands. A video released by the Australian Open itself showed the speedy process of preparing the shining silver cup for its presentation to the victor.
The clip begins with the engraver watching the match on TV and waiting — with the trophy in his hands — for the end of the final. Once the umpire calls "game, set, match," the staffer pulls his magnifying goggles down over his eyes and sets out on etching Sabalenka's first initial and last name into the silver base.
In other years, the staffer would also carve the abbreviation for the winner's home country in parentheses following her name. But because Sabalenka is from Belarus, whose athletes are barred from competing under its flag due to its role in the Ukraine war, this year's trophy left the geographical component blank.
The engraver then can be seen polishing off the trophy and handing it over to the white-gloved individual charged with carrying it out onto the court.