The newly-crowned champion Aryna Sabalenka took the Australian Open women's singles trophy also known as 'Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup', on a gondola tour through Melbourne's botanical gardens on Sunday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
She stepped out on the town as a Grand Slam winner for the first time and took her trophy for a spin in front of one of the city's most scenic backdrop.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The newly-crowned major winner took the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup on a tour of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, complete with a gondola ride.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Sabalenka posed for the cameras with both the trophy and a bottle of champagne and said that she was still living the dream less than 24 hours after coming from behind to defeat Elena Rybakina in a classic, three-set championship match inside Rod Laver Arena.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
She received the championship trophy from Billie Jean King, whom she thanked for everything she's done for women's tennis.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I still feel like I'm on another planet, trying to understand what's just happened," Sabalenka said on Sunday. "It's the best morning of my life. It's so beautiful."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
On Monday, Sabalenka will match her career-high ranking when she moves up to No.2 in the rankings. She finds herself 4,385 behind Swiatek.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I still feel like I'm on another planet, trying to understand what's just happened," Sabalenka said on Sunday. "It's the best morning of my life. It's so beautiful."<\/p>\r\n\r\n