By Richard Pagliaro | @TennisNow | Saturday, January 4, 2025
Picture credit score: Elena Rybakina Instagram
Elena Rybakina backs coach Stefano Vukov—and is looking out some coaches on Tour for his or her criticism of him.
Final week, Rybakina introduced Vukov, who beforehand coached her for greater than 5 years, was rejoining her group as an assistant coach beneath head coach Goran Ivanisevic.
Pegula: Swiatek Case Evokes Religion and Frustration
After Rybakina’s announcement, The Athletic broke the information that Vukov is serving a provisional suspension that stops him from receiving a training credential for this month’s Australian Open.
Some coaches and commentators, together with Pam Shriver and Rennae Stubbs, have criticized Vukov for his therapy of Rybakina.
World No. 6 Rybakina mentioned Vukov has not mistreated her—and reiterated she’s not joyful seeing vital feedback from different coaches.
“After all I am probably not proud of the scenario. I am not proud of the feedback which I see, particularly from the people who find themselves on the tour,” Rybakina instructed the media at United Cup in Sydney. “It is lively coaches, commentators. I do not suppose that it is honest.
“Yeah, however the one factor I can say is, like, he by no means mistreated me. I’ve respect to him for every thing he did from the very starting after I was 200 all the way in which what we did, like, I do not know. You’ll be able to identify me different coaches who had the identical success with gamers who’ve been 200 after which successful Grand Slam and being within the prime.”
Ivanisevic, who has coached Novak Djokovic and Marin Cilic to Grand Slam championships, was reportedly not within the loop on Vukov’s return and blindsided by the information.
Nevertheless, Rybakina mentioned she’s proud of how her partnership with Ivanisevic is continuing, however didn’t say if her new coach is joyful together with her former coach’s return to the group.
“Effectively, I am working with Goran, and these articles got here out, I imply, I can solely say and I mentioned it already earlier than that [Stefano Vukov] by no means mistreated me or it was by no means something like that.
“I imply, I am working with Goran. I am joyful the way in which we work now for the couple of weeks. As I additionally mentioned, that Stefano is rejoining the group as a result of I do know the individual for six years, and there’s a lot of issues we will do outdoors of the courtroom too.”