Tennis
Tearful Rybakina shrugs off Russia questions after Wimbledon triumph
Newly crowned Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina broke down in tears on Saturday (July 9) after she was again confronted by questions over her Russian roots.
Rybakina, born in Moscow but representing Kazakhstan after switching allegiances in 2018, defeated Ons Jabeur in the women’s final.
Her triumph came at a tournament where her Russian compatriots were banned following the invasion of Ukraine.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s always some news, but I cannot do anything about this,” said the 23-year-old when asked if the Russian government would be tempted to politicise her Grand Slam triumph.
“I’m playing for Kazakhstan a very long time. I represent them on the biggest tournaments, Olympics, which was a dream come true.”
Russian tennis chief Shamil Tarpischev, however, hailed Rybakina’s victory as a triumph for Russia, describing the player as “our product”.
“It’s very nice! Well done Rybakina! We win the Wimbledon tournament,” Tarpischev was quoted as saying by Russian news agency, Ria Novosti.
Rybakina’s parents live in Moscow. She has been reluctant throughout the tournament to elaborate on how much time she spends in the country.
When she was pressed further on Saturday and invited to condemn Russian President Vladimir Putin and the invasion, Rybakina pleaded for understanding.
“I didn’t choose where I was born. 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.”
Rybakina wept towards the end of her news conference when asked to describe her parents’ reaction to her Grand Slam win.
“Probably they’re going to be super proud,” she said as the tears came. “You wanted to see emotion… Kept it too long.”
Rybakina had celebrated her first Slam triumph with a low-key, routine handshake at the net.
Jabeur teased that she would have to teach the new champion how to celebrate such a momentous moment.
“I’m always very calm,” explained Rybakina. “Maybe because I believed that I can do it, deep inside.”
Rybakina admitted she had suffered stage fright in the first set on Saturday when she dropped serve twice and committed 17 unforced errors.
But she composed herself to romp through the next two sets, winning 12 of 16 games.
“Today, I was too stressed out. I think I didn’t enjoy it as much as I should maybe. I enjoyed more the semi-final,” she said.
Rybakina is US$2.4 million (S$3.3 million) better off after Saturday’s victory.
However, she is looking forward more to being a life member of the All England Club, a perk reserved for all champions.
“That sounds amazing.”
-AFP
Argentina’s 36-year-old Marco Trungelliti proved tennis dreams do not come with an expiration date when he became the oldest first-time tour-level finalist in the Open Era after beating the top seed at the Grand Prix Hassan II semi-finals in Marrakech on Saturday.
Trungelliti, who came through the tournament’s qualifiers, upset Italy’s defending champion Luciano Darderi 6-4 7-6(2) to break the previous record held by Victor Estrella Burgos of the Dominican Republic, who reached his first final aged 34 years in 2015.
Darderi, ranked 19 in the world, was only six-years-old when Trungelliti turned pro in 2008. With the victory, Trungelliti secured just his second career top-20 win.
“Of course, I believed it, that’s one of the reasons that I’m here. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be possible,” Trungelliti said in the on-court interview.
“I’ve worked a lot, me and my team and also my wife, my kid. We all believed in breaking the record basically and that’s exactly what we have done now.”
The milestone caps a remarkable journey for Trungelliti, who made his first ATP Tour semi-final in 2018 in Umag, Croatia – 402 weeks ago.
Having entered the tournament ranked 117 in the world, Trungelliti’s breakthrough week has already guaranteed he will crack the top 100 for the first time. He is currently ranked number 75 in the live rankings.
“It’s been happening the whole week, leaving the court with a victory,” added Trungelliti, who has dropped only one set at the tournament. “So hopefully (there) is one more to go.”
He will face Rafael Jodar on Sunday after the Spaniard prevented an all-Argentine final with a 6-2 6-1 victory over Camilo Ugo Carabelli.
-Reuters
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Serena Williams has been listed as eligible to return to tennis by the sport’s drug-testing body (ITIA) as of February 22, though it remains unclear whether the 23-time Grand Slam champion will make a stunning comeback to the women’s tour.
The 44-year-old raised eyebrows late last year after rejoining the tennis anti-doping testing pool, though she denied at the time the move signalled she was preparing to return to the sport she dominated for nearly two decades.
She reignited speculation last month when she deflected questions about a possible return during an appearance on NBC’s “Today” show.
The Women’s Tennis Association did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside normal business hours.
Williams, who won her last Grand Slam singles title in 2017, has not competed since the 2022 U.S. Open.
-Reuters
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Serena Williams has re-entered the tennis anti-doping testing pool but the 23-times Grand Slam champion denied on Tuesday that the move had anything to do with her making a return to the sport she dominated for nearly two decades.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency confirmed to Reuters that Williams, who has not competed since the 2022 U.S. Open, was among the list of players in its testing pool, which requires individuals to provide their whereabouts at any given time, every day, and participate in random testing
But as the story of 44-year-old Williams’ inclusion on the list, first reported earlier on Tuesday by The Athletic, gained traction and sparked talk about her potential return, the tennis great took to social media to deny a comeback was in her plans.
“Omg yall I’m NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy,” Williams wrote on X.
Her agent did not immediately respond to an email from Reuters asking why the player had re-entered the testing pool.
Williams’ name appears on the ITIA website’s list of retired players and would be able to return to a sanctioned event after making herself available for out-of-competition testing for at least six months.
Last week former world number one Williams posted a series of photos on Instagram showing herself on a tennis court with her youngest daughter, Adira River, whom she gave birth to in August 2023.
In August 2022, ahead of her final U.S. Open, Williams announced in a Vogue article that she was “evolving away from tennis.”
Williams, who won her last Grand Slam singles title in 2017, had been chasing an elusive 24th crown that would have drawn her level with Australian Margaret Court, who holds the record.
The American came tantalisingly close to achieving that feat, featuring in four major finals since giving birth to her first daughter, Olympia, in 2017.
-Reuters
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