Aryna Sabalenka exacerbated handshake snub by waiting at the net, says Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina said that she was unsure why Belarusian opponent Aryna Sabalenka waited at the net for a handshake after their French Open match. With the war in her home country ongoing, Svitolina has declined to shake hands with Russian and Belarusian players since returning to tennis following the … Read more

Ukrainian tennis star Elina Svitolina calls Russian opponent ‘brave’ following French Open win | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  Tennis player Elina Svitolina called her opponent, Russian Daria Kasatkina, a “brave one” following the Ukrainian’s upset win on Sunday. Svitolina, who previously said she would not shake hands with Russian and Belarusian opponents out of respect for the men and women defending Ukraine, told reporters that she “acknowledged” Kasatkina after the … Read more

Aryna Sabalenka opts out of French Open press conference, saying she ‘did not feel safe’ at last press conference | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka did not participate in a customary post-match press conference after her third-round win at the French Open on Friday, saying she didn’t feel safe when participating in a press conference held earlier this week. On Wednesday, after winning in the second round of the tournament, the Belarusian … Read more

Elina Svitolina and husband Gaël Monfils are having quite a time at the French Open | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  Elina Svitolina came from behind to beat Storm Hunter at the French Open – just one day after watching husband Gaël Monfils win a mammoth game against Sebastián Báez. Svitolina dropped the first set against her Australian counterpart 6-2 but stormed back in emphatic fashion winning the last two sets 3-6 1-6 … Read more

World No. 172 Thiago Seyboth Wild stuns Russian star Daniil Medvedev in French Open upset | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  The French Open has already seen a major upset as world No. 2 Daniil Medvedev was knocked out by Brazilian qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild in the first round on Tuesday. The world No. 172 showed little sign of nerves by beating Medvedev in a thrilling five-set encounter – 7-6(5) 6-7(6) 2-6 6-3 … Read more

French Open crowd boos as Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk refuses to shake hands with Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  Ukrainian tennis player Marta Kostyuk refused to shake hands with Belarusian opponent Aryna Sabalenka following their opening round match at the French Open, leading to boos from some of the crowd. After Sabalenka secured the 6-3 6-2 win, Kostyuk walked straight over to the umpire to shake her hand and then back … Read more

Ukrainian tennis player refuses to shake Russian opponent’s hand after semifinal victory | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  Ukrainian tennis player Anhelina Kalinina refused to shake hands with Veronika Kudermetova, her Russian opponent, following the former’s victory in the semifinals of the Rome Masters in Italy on Friday. Speaking to reporters after the match at Foro Italico, Rome, Kalinina said, “We didn’t shake hands because the girl is from Russia … Read more

Russia’s Daria Kasatkina says it ‘makes a lot of sense’ for Ukrainian tennis players to receive support during grass-court season | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  Daria Kasatkina, Russia’s top-ranked female tennis player, has praised the decision of the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) and Wimbledon to support Ukrainian tennis players during the grass-court tennis season. After Wimbledon announced that Russian and Belarusian players would be able to compete at this year’s tournament, organizers said they would cover the … Read more

Mirra Andreeva celebrated her 16th birthday and another astonishing victory at the Madrid Open | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  It has been quite the weekend for Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva. On Saturday she celebrated her 16th birthday and also continued her remarkable progress at the Madrid Open. Andreeva, ranked world No. 194 and a wildcard for the tournament, beat world No. 19 Magda Linette 6-3 6-3 on the clay in Spain. … Read more

Poland’s state-owned airline refuses boarding to Russian tennis player | CNN

[ad_1] CNN  —  Poland’s state-owned airline LOT refused to board Russian tennis player Vitalia Diatchenko in line with restrictions introduced following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the carrier said in a statement to CNN on Wednesday without naming her. Diatchenko was denied boarding a LOT flight departing from Cairo on Monday as she was traveling to … Read more