The ongoing strife between tennis star Elena Rybakina and the WTA has taken a new turn. Elena has always been very vocal in her opposition to the association. Guadalajara winner Maria Sakkari recently opened up about her stance, with a contradictory statement. And now, fans have put Rybakina and her team in place.
The Kazakh has a history of dishing out criticism to the WTA. Elena was in the news last week when she lambasted the governing body again. The bone of contention was the introduction of performance byes ahead of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.
The top seeds, Iga Swiatek and Jessica Pegula got first-round byes, but the third-seeded Rybakina did not. Maria and Caroline Garcia got them instead. Soon after, Stefano Vukov, Rybakina’s coach, came out in her support too. However, Sakkari recently countered their claims.
Oh not Sakkari saying in her pre-match conference that they’ve known about the Tokyo Guada performance byes for 5 months 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/750Y5m2COU
— Melanie Lautrup (@melanie_lautrup) September 27, 2023
During the press conference, Sakkari spoke of the rule being in place for the past 14 years. Moreover, all players were informed 5 months in advance. “This is not a new rule, I think it has been in place for about 14 years, and that’s actually the case,” she said (via TennisUpToDate).
Sakkari’s statements clearly contradict Rybakina and her team’s. Fans have taken to trolling the Kazakh, as one user wrote, “Rybakina is cringe af.” Here are a few more reactions to the whole issue.
rybakina and her team looking ridiculous rn🤭 https://t.co/dwjPZzq1eL
— sad andrey rublev ~ (@bvbgurrrl) September 27, 2023
Rybakina is cringe af
— Jakub Syska 🇪🇺 (@jacobsyska) September 27, 2023
Not team Rybakina being in their Sharapova era and forgetting to read her emails 💀 https://t.co/e6CukSlfm2
— Danny | British Flop enjoyer (@Emmagoatcanu) September 27, 2023
Elena Rybakina and her team have found themselves in a weird spot. However, they are not the only ones confused about performance byes. A lot of fans are also confounded by it.
Elena Rybakina is not the only one confused about performance byes
Performance byes are handed to players who performed well the week prior. It affords them a chance to qualify for the second round directly. The WTA 1000 China Open has also offered first-round performance byes. So, instead of the four top seeds, the four semifinalists of the Tokyo Open will receive them.
Main draw at China Open, the last WTA 1000 tournament of the season.
Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula are the top seeds.
The byes go to the four Tokyo semifinalists as performance byes: Pegula, Sakkari, Kudermetova, Pavlyuchenkova. pic.twitter.com/slShXhHI6v
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) September 29, 2023
Ever since this was announced, fans have been left scratching their heads in an effort to understand this better. A few fans feel that this system is unjust to the players who have worked hard throughout the year. One fan, in particular, feels that the WTA introducing performance byes without a proper rollout is horrible.
Elena Rybakina has managed to start a heated debate among fans and tennis pundits. The former Wimbledon champion will be seen at the WTA 1000 event next.
