“A bitter feeling”: Russian Kasatkina booed at Roland-Garros after her match against Ukrainian Svitolina

2023-06-06 08:26:31

A defeat in the round of 16 at Roland-Garros that hurts. And not only because it means the end of the tournament for the Russian Daria Kasatkina. The latter, opposed to the Ukrainian Elina Svitolina on Sunday for a ticket to the quarter-finals of the Parisian tournament, lost in two sets (6-4, 7-6) and had the unpleasant surprise of being whistled by part of the public at the Porte d’Auteil.

The reason ? The exchange between the two players at the end of the match. Because contrary to tradition, Kasatkina and Svitolina did not shake hands above the net of the Suzanne-Lenglen court. The first, after shaking hands with the chair judge, gave the second a thumbs up. Which earned him boos, while this lack of handshake was expected.

Kasatkina has repeatedly taken a stand against the Russian-led war in Ukraine, and accepts the fact that Ukrainian women do not greet Russians or Belarusians. The day before, for example, Svitolina had chosen not to shake hands with the Russian Anna Blinkova, simply raising her thumb in her direction.

Svitolina ‘welcomes’ Kasatkina’s stance

“I leave Paris after a very bitter feeling, she regretted on Twitter. All these days, after each match I played in Paris, I always appreciated and thanked the public for their support and their presence for the players. But yesterday I was booed for simply respecting my opponent’s position of not shaking his hand. »

Leaving Paris with a very bitter feeling. All this days, after every match I’ve played in Paris I always appreciate and thanked crowd for support and being there for the players. But yesterday I was booed for just being respectful on my opponents position not to shake hands. [1]

— Daria Kasatkina (@DKasatkina) June 5, 2023

“Me and Elina showed respect after a tough game, but leaving the pitch like that was the worst part of yesterday. Be better, love each other. Don’t spread hate. Try to make this world a better place. I will love Roland-Garros no matter what, always and forever. See you next year,” she concluded, adding the French flag to the end of her message.

“Of course, I greeted her, and I thank her for the position she took. Of course, I recognize what she did, she is brave. She expressed herself publicly, there are not many players who have done so, ”explained the wife of Gaël Monfils, who gave birth to their daughter, Skaï, in October.

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine was invited from the first round of this 2023 edition of the clay court tournament. Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk was whistled by the Roland-Garros public for refusing the hand of Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, whose country supports Russia.