“Needed somebody to blame for decline in ranking” – Elena Rybakina’s coach gets slammed by fans for not knowing tournament rules amid her performance byes fiasco in Tokyo

Several tennis fans called the Croatian coach out for not having enough knowledge regarding the rules of tennis.

“Needed somebody to blame for decline in ranking” – Elena Rybakina’s coach gets slammed by fans for not knowing tournament rules amid her performance byes fiasco in Tokyo

(L) Elena Rybakina; (R) Stefano Vukov (Credits: WTA)

Former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina who recently withdrew from the Japan Open, has received support from her coach, Stefano Vukov. Vukov took to his Instagram account to criticize the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) for what he deemed a lack of transparency and unprofessional conduct. He wrote, ““Just to make things clear, there is no explanation of what a performance bye is. What does this mean? Do we add byes to help performing players? Or do we take away ranking earned byes? And isn’t ranking itself a sign of performance?”

This controversy began when Rybakina expressed her dissatisfaction with the WTA‘s sudden rule changes. She specifically called out the organization for not granting her a ‘performance bye,’ despite her higher ranking compared to players who were awarded such byes. The WTA’s decision to award byes to players based on their performance in the previous week was announced at the last minute.

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This is not the first time that the WTA has faced criticism from players. Just a month ago, Rybakina, along with former World No.1 Iga Swiatek and several others, raised concerns about the impractical match timings during the US circuit. Matches would often extend late into the night, leading to player fatigue and inconvenience.

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Also read: Elena Rybakina makes a last-minute withdrawal from the Japan Open citing fitness concerns

Fans thrash Elena Rybakina’s coach Stefano Vukov for his lack of knowledge

Following Stefano Vukov’s candid expression of his thoughts on his Instagram stories, some tennis fans questioned the Croatian coach’s knowledge of tennis rules. There is a perception among some that Rybakina and her team are attempting to find reasons to justify her lower ranking this season, as she has not performed at her best.

Stefano Vukov
Vukov (Credit: Shutterstock)

From achieving a career-high ranking of World No. 3, Rybakina has slipped to the 5th position in the rankings.

As of now, WTA has not made any announcement regarding this issue. It is also not clear if Rybakina pulled out of the Tokyo event because of this reason. The social media stands divided upon this incident.

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