Tennis insider Jon Wertheim thought Elena Rybakina directly refusing to take a picture with WTA CEO Portia Archer showed "a glimpse into her personality," but also highlights that he is not blaming the WTA for the action they took against the Kazakh's coach Stefano Vukov.
After Rybakina defeated Aryna Sabalenka 6-3 7-6 (3) to become a WTA Finals champion, WTA CEO Archer came to the court during the trophy presentation. Traditionally, a WTA CEO takes a picture standing alongside the champion and the runner-up of the prestigious season-ending tournament. But this year, it didn't happen after the 26-year-old went a couple of metres away and very openly made it clear that she didn't want to pose with Archer.
It wasn't hard to understand why it happened as Rybakina – who is usually reserved and rarely shows any emotion or reaction – was clearly still upset with the WTA banning her coach Vukov earlier this year.
Wertheim: Rybakina turning away from Porcher was actually a rare glimpse into her personality
"Yeah, this is a player who doesn’t give up much. I don’t know if you saw her reaction before she turned away from WTA CEO Portia Archer at the trophy presentation — or even on match point — not exactly cartwheels. She’s not particularly expressive, so that gesture, basically not acknowledging the WTA, was actually a rare glimpse into her personality," Wertheim said on the Served with Andy Roddick.
The WTA received a complaint that Vukov was physically and verbally abusing Rybakina. Although the 2022 Wimbledon champion denied that ever happening, the WTA still proceeded to ban Vukov for a year following the conclusion of their investigation.
"I don’t think the WTA has anything to apologize for. You get a complaint, you’re obligated to look into it. There’s a code of conduct, and they determined the coach violated it. So, I don’t think the WTA did anything wrong," Wertheim noted.
Vukov lodged a successful appeal into the WTA's ruling and he returned to Rybakina's team just before the US Open.
