Yelena Rybakina exchanged Russia for Kazakhstan four years ago. That is why she was allowed to participate in London this year. When she was introduced on center court as Wimbledon champion on Saturday afternoon by BBC celebrity Sue Barker, there was a booing amid applause that was already not heartwarming from the stands. Rybakina, 23 years old, hardhitter is anything but the dream winner of the grass tournament that had previously decided to exclude (Belarus) Russian players and players because of the war in Ukraine.
This decision exploded in the face of the organization, as it were, when the Tunisian Ons Jabeur, the public favourite, hit the ball outside the lines after 1 hour and 48 minutes of play and the hypothermic champion Rybakina became the successor of the Australian Ashleigh Barty: 3 -6, 6-2 and 6-2. It meant that Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, had to congratulate a Moscow-born player.
For (Belarus) Russian players and players like Daniil Medvedev, Andrei Roeblev and Aryna Sabalenka, the victory of their former compatriot will feel unfair.
lenders
As a teenager, Rybakina did not feel enough supported by the Russian Tennis Federation. The government of Kazakhstan had already conceived a plan to bind young tennis players to their country with the help of money lenders. This country did want to invest in Rybakina. She made the switch together with other compatriots and since then she has also played for Kazakhstan in the Fed Cup and at the Tokyo Olympics, where she finished fourth.
“I got so much help and support. They believed in me and did everything they could to ensure that I could keep playing and improve myself. Of course that helped. I am very happy that I have been representing Kazakhstan for a long time,” Rybakina said at Wimbledon last week, during one of her press conferences in London, where the questions for the former Russian became more and more insistent.
Because does the player from Kazakhstan still feel very Russian? Her parents still live in Moscow. “That’s a difficult question,” said the introverted Rybakina. When asked whether, according to reports, she still lives in Moscow, she replied that she lives everywhere and nowhere, because she has to travel continuously for her sport.
She can be proud of her first Grand Slam title. Nobody saw this victory coming
Still, they will be celebrating at Spartak Club Moscow, where she started playing when she was five years old. ‘Their’ Jelena Rybakina, 23, is a Wimbledon champion, the youngest since Petra Kvitova in 2011. The Russian tennis federation has also said that they still see the player, who left when she was 19, as „our own product.”
Wimbledon has been criticized for discriminating against certain nationalities. Player organizations ATP (men) and WTA (women) took away the ranking points of the tournament, and that felt unfair to players and players who came far, such as the Dutch sensation Tim van Rijthoven, who made it to the fourth round.
The ‘Venus Rosewater Dish’ has earned the number 23 in the world. She played a great tournament. In the semifinals, she made a big impression against Simona Halep, the 2019 champion, who she defeated in two sets. She can be proud of her first Grand Slam title. No one had foreseen this victory either. Rybakina reached a WTA final in Adelaide in January, after that her performance was very mixed.
Understated joy
However, the modest way in which she celebrated her first Grand Slam title did not help the atmosphere in London. Many spectators on the center court hoped to crown an Arab tennis star as champion for the first time on Saturday afternoon. The Tunisian Ons Jabeur (27) had already stolen many hearts last year with its quarterfinals in London. With her ‘grass tennis’ she was clearly the favourite, with her big smile and strong personality.
Jabeur’s game also makes for many happy faces. As the only player on the women’s tour, the number 2 in the world at Wimbledon only hits ‘crazy’ balls, with a lot of feeling. Short, long, low, if at all possible Jabeur wants to hit the slice or dropshot to upset her opponents.
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The final was a nice contrast of playing styles, with Jabeur as the creative artist and Rybakina as the hard-serving killer – hitting 49 aces until the final.
It was initially Jabeur, who showed that she was on a mission. Already after three games she showed that she did not suffer from the nerves. A picture of a backhand drop shot was just taken by Rybakina, after which the Tunisian with a subtle wrist movement a backhand past the Kazakh. It set the tone for the rest of the first set, in which Jabeur predominated.
But from the second set, Rybakina’s sledgehammer blows reigned. Jabeur began to falter mentally, making strange choices. Rybakina became more and more determined and started to make fewer mistakes. She showed that she is fast enough to get drop shots. She also made important points at the net. She served out the second set with an ace and started the decisive third set with two winners, to break Jabeur’s serve again. She survived three break points in the sixth game – with her height and Russian cool-headedness, she served herself out of trouble and gave Kazakhstan its first Wimbledon title.