Elena Rybakina won a Wimbledon Title on July 9, 2022 in England. The run to this title was full of overwhelming serves, timely winners, and underrated defenses.
Rybakina, currently ranked 23rd, was born and raised in Russia. The six-foot tennis player plays for the nation of Kazakhstan.
During Saturday’s final, Rybakina was against the No. 2 player in the world, Ons Jabeur. Rybakina ended with the scores 3-6, 6-2, and 6-2, leaving her with victory.
This year, Wimbledon didn’t allow any Russian or Belarusian players because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. However, Wimbledon didn’t block out players who used to represent Russia. Rybakina then switched allegiances because of the lack of support Russia was giving her.
Rybakina was asked whether she condemned the war, however, she didn’t respond and claimed that she couldn’t understand the question. She did make her tennis allegiances clear though.
“I didn’t choose where I was born,” she said. “People believed in me. Kazakhstan supported me so much. Even today, I heard so much support. I saw the flags, so I don’t know how to answer these questions.”
Yaroslava Shvedova, who won the Wimbledon women’s doubles title and the only player in the Open era to complete a so-called golden set at a Grand Slam tournament was there to cheer on Rybakina. Stefano Vukov, Rybakina’s coach, was also there to show support.
“To be honest, we’ve always been underdogs, anyone coming from Eastern Europe. We’ve always had to fight against windmills to break through. It’s not as easy as for other federations from other countries. Thank God the Kazakhstan federation has been supporting her,” said Vukov.
Rybakina, currently ranked 23rd, was born and raised in Russia. The six-foot tennis player plays for the nation of Kazakhstan.
During Saturday’s final, Rybakina was against the No. 2 player in the world, Ons Jabeur. Rybakina ended with the scores 3-6, 6-2, and 6-2, leaving her with victory.
This year, Wimbledon didn’t allow any Russian or Belarusian players because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. However, Wimbledon didn’t block out players who used to represent Russia. Rybakina then switched allegiances because of the lack of support Russia was giving her.
Rybakina was asked whether she condemned the war, however, she didn’t respond and claimed that she couldn’t understand the question. She did make her tennis allegiances clear though.
“I didn’t choose where I was born,” she said. “People believed in me. Kazakhstan supported me so much. Even today, I heard so much support. I saw the flags, so I don’t know how to answer these questions.”
Yaroslava Shvedova, who won the Wimbledon women’s doubles title and the only player in the Open era to complete a so-called golden set at a Grand Slam tournament was there to cheer on Rybakina. Stefano Vukov, Rybakina’s coach, was also there to show support.
“To be honest, we’ve always been underdogs, anyone coming from Eastern Europe. We’ve always had to fight against windmills to break through. It’s not as easy as for other federations from other countries. Thank God the Kazakhstan federation has been supporting her,” said Vukov.