Paris:
Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka has advanced to the quarter-finals of the politically charged French Open with Ukraine. Elena Svitolina Sunday and promptly set the tone for a high-profile confrontation by media boycotting Roland Garros for the second time.
Australian Open champion and world number two Sabalenka Sloane defeated Stephens 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 to reach the last eight for the first time in Paris.
Tuesday’s clash will be the third meeting between Sabalenka and Svitolina but the first since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. Belarus is Moscow’s main military ally.
Svitolina has played two Russians so far in the tournament and refused to shake hands with either in protest of the war.
Sabalenka defeated Svitolina’s Ukrainian compatriot Marta Kostyuk in the opening round last weekend.
Kostyuk’s decision not to shake hands also earned him a chorus of boos from the Paris crowd. Kostyuk said the audience who mocked him should be “embarrassed”.
After defeating Stephens on Sunday, it was announced that Sabalenka would not attend the post-match press conference for the second match in a row.
She boycotted her last scheduled press conference after defeating Kamila Rakhimova in the third round on Friday.
He claimed he “didn’t feel safe” when previously questioned about the war and his relationship with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
“Aryna Sabalenka will not hold a normal press conference tonight,” the organizers said in a statement.
“An interview with a WTA editorial reporter will be conducted and transcribed and distributed shortly.”
Not surprisingly, the delicate question of the Belarus vs. Ukraine conflict was politely avoided in the official handout provided by the organizers.
Sabalenka limited her comments to her expectations for Tuesday’s match, promising to show “my best tennis.”
After her first two rounds, Sabalenka answered several tough questions about her personal position in the war as well as her relationship with the Belarusian government.
He was asked on Wednesday why he “signed a letter to support Lukashenko” in 2020 when “he was torturing and beating protesters” on the streets.
“I have no comment for you, so thank you for your question,” he replied.
Earlier, Svitolina made her fourth Grand Slam quarterfinal appearance after becoming a mother.
The Ukrainian beat Daria Kasatkina 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) for her seventh win in seven matches against the Russian, who was a semi-finalist last year.
Despite not shaking hands, Kasatkina gave her rival a friendly thumbs-up.
Svitolina described Kasatkina as “brave” for supporting the British tennis authorities’ decision to offer two hotel rooms to all Ukrainian players during the upcoming grass court season at Wimbledon.
“Obviously I conceded today’s match. Really grateful for the position she took,” Svitolina said on Sunday.
“Yeah, he’s a really brave person to say that publicly, not many players have done that.”
Svitolina says she won’t shake Sabalenka’s hand when they meet on Tuesday.
“I played the last two matches against Russian players so it won’t change, everything will be the same,” he said.
“So I’m used to it now, it’s going to be the same.”
Unlike Sabalenka, the 28-year-old Svitolina insisted that post-match press conferences provided her and other Ukrainian players with an important public platform.
He said, “It’s great to have a press conference. The players are sharing moments on the court, off the court.”
Speculation continues at home about Svitolina’s role in the quarter-finals.
“This is a story of confidence… This is a story of courage… A story of courage… Well deserved @Elinasvitolina, thank you for giving Ukraine a reason to celebrate,” tweeted former ATP Tour player Sergey Stakhovsky.
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