Elena Rybakina very directly confirmed that she intentionally refused to take a picture with WTA CEO Portia Archer and suggested that the relationship between her team and the WTA authorities is strained.
After sealing a 6-3 7-6 (0) win over Aryna Sabalenka and landing her first WTA Finals title, Rybakina was joined on the podium by her rival but also WTA CEO Archer. Needless to say, the 26-year-old Kazakh didn't like Archer's presence a bit, swiftly removing herself from the WTA CEO.
While Rybakina's move instantly went viral and drew major attention, there was zero doubt about why she decided to pull off such a move - the Kazakh strongly defended Stefano Vukov over abuse allegations but the WTA still proceeded to ban her coach earlier this year.
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Rybakina: We had a chance to speak it didn't happen...
To no one's surprise, the 2022 Wimbledon champion was asked to address the controversial Riyadh scene. And when doing so, the 26-year-old appeared to suggest that she has no intention of fixing anything with the WTA.
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"I think we're all doing our job and we had the opportunity to have conversations but in the end it never happened so we're all doing our job and I think we're going to keep it this way," Rybakina said, via Reem Abulleil.
During the summer, Vukov appealed the WTA's one-year ban. The Croatian tennis coach's appeal was successful and he returned to Rybakina's team just before the US Open. It positively impacted the Kazakh's tennis, who won Ningbo and the WTA Finals over the past 20 days.
