"They weren’t ready to put the hard work" - Aryna Sabalenka reveals real reason behind joining Naomi Osaka's Evolve after split with IMG

Aryna Sabalenka recently spoke up about joining Naomi Osaka's Evolve following her split with IMG. According to the reigning World No. 1, IMG didn't work hard enough to build her brand.

In early January this year, it was confirmed that the Belarusian had moved on from IMG and signed with Evolve, a talent agency co-founded in May 2022 by Osaka and the Japanese's longtime agent, Stuart Duguid. In a recent interview with Boardroom, Sabalenka reflected on the factors that caused her collaboration with IMG to end. The three-time singles Major champion questioned the renowned management agency's approach, saying:

"Well, I didn’t like the way IMG approached things. If you want to build something big and something for yourself, and you want to build your brand and not just get the momentum deals, they’re not going to help you on that. I never had a structured plan for what I actually want, where I want to be, which brands I want to work with."

Going on to elaborate on her transition from IMG to Evolve, Aryna Sabalenka added:

"I’m not going to talk about them overall, but I’m going to say that with me personally, they weren’t really focused on me, on building my brand. I was just one of so many. And it’s tough to compete with the rest of the players they have because of the market and nationality. I think that they weren’t ready to put the hard work into helping me. I found a great team. I feel super connected, and I really love those guys."

Over the years, IMG has represented the likes of Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova, Novak Djokovic and many more elite names in the tennis world. Evolve, a relatively new management agency, most notably represents Sabalenka, Nick Kyrgios, Anna Kalinskaya and co-founder Naomi Osaka herself.

Aryna Sabalenka starts US Open title defense with straight-set win in 1R

Aryna Sabalenka at the 2025 US Open (Source: Getty)

At last year's US Open, Aryna Sabalenka won the women's singles title at the New York Major for the first time after defeating home favorite Jessica Pegula in the final. This year, the Belarusian started her title defense at Flushing Meadows with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Rebeka Masarova from Switzerland.

The reigning No. 1's next challenge at the US Open is a second-round clash against Polina Kudermetova, the 67th-ranked player in the WTA Tour's singles rankings. Sabalenka has faced the Russian only on one previous occasion; the 2025 Brisbane International final, which the Belarusian won 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.

If Sabalenka overcomes Kudermetova again, she will go on to lock horns with either Elsa Jacquesmot or Leylah Fernandez in the third round.