A tennis star with one of the most ripped physiques on the global tour has been cruelly targeted by trolls after a recent win.
Maria Sakkari, 29, is a Greek professional who achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No.3 in 2022, making her the highest-ranked female player her country has ever produced.
She has won two WTA singles titles, including a WTA 1000 title at the 2023 Guadalajara Open.
She reached the semifinals of the French Open and the US Open in 2021, becoming the first Greek woman to reach a Grand Slam semifinal.
However, she has crashed out of contention in recent years, including being bundled out of the first round of her pet event at Roland Garros in 2024.
Now Sakkari has shown a resurgence in form at the 2025 Mutua Madrid Open, advancing to the Round of 16 with a commanding 6–2, 6–1 victory over No.6 seed Jasmine Paolini.
This image of Greek tennis player Maria Sakkari has attracted plenty of attention on social media after her win over Italy’s Jasmine Paolini at the Madrid Open
Sakkari is no stranger to the gym and has shared her gruelling workouts to her online audience
The performance follows her earlier wins against Xinyu Wang (6–4, 7–6) and Magda Linette (7–6, 6–3), marking her first string of consecutive victories since January.
However, an image of from the win over Paolini has attracted attention for all the wrong reasons, with trolls slamming the star for her very impressive physique and even baselessly claiming she has resorted to performance-enhancing drugs to achieve it.
‘Holy mother of roids,’ one follower posted.
Another asked: ‘They check for doping?’
‘Do they do random drug testing in womens tennis?’ questioned another.
Daily Mail Australia does not suggest that Sakkari has failed any performance-enhancing drug-testing procedures or is guilty of using any banned substances.
Sakkari has previously spoken out against the drug-testing methods used on the WTA tour, but has denied ever using performance enhancing substances herself.
‘One thing I can tell you for sure is the way they’re handling every situation with any player, any athlete, it’s just scary,’ Sakkari said in 2023.
Most tennis fans are in awe of Sakkari’s physique and have asked how they can achieve the same results
Sakkari has drawn comparisons to Abby from the hit video game The Last of Us: Part II
‘We’re gonna get to a point where we’re not even gonna be taking electrolytes. Thankfully, I haven’t been in that position. I never want to be.’
Others cruelly compared her physique to a man’s while one anonymous poster claimed she was not as athletic as the photo implied.
‘I’m a 16 y/o high school football player and she’s nowhere near as fit as me,’ they posted.
However, tennis fans have rallied to praise Sakkari, who shows off her gruelling gym routines on her Instagram account.
‘I love her arms and shoulders … wow,’ one posted.
Another said: ‘Love her fitness commitment.’
‘Her right arm looks so strong, it’s almost impossible,’ marvelled another.
‘Sakkari doesn’t miss triceps days,’ posted another fan.
Yet another added: ‘Omg what a bicep, Schwarzenegger in a skirt.’
Some compared Sakkari to Abby, the fictional, musclebound character from the video game and hit television series The Last of Us.
‘She should have been casted for Abby in The Last of Us,’ one follower commented.
Others begged to learn how she had achieved her high watermark of fitness.
‘Sakkari, I need your shoulder and back workout, please,’ one fan asked.
