(Monterrey) “I was on a mission for my country”: blue skirt and yellow sweater, Ukrainian Elina Svitolina beat Russian Anastasia Potapova on Tuesday at the WTA tennis tournament in Monterrey, Mexico.
Posted yesterday at 11:59 p.m.
“All the bonuses I earn here will go to the army, so thank you for the support,” she said very moved, to the applause of the public, after her easy victory (6-1, 6-2) against the 20 year old Russian girl, 81and world.
The serious face, the seeded number 1 several times raised his right hand to the heart after his victory. The Ukrainian and the Russian exchanged formal greetings at the end of the match.
Ukrainian, 15and world, had initially considered boycotting his match to protest against the invasion of his country by Moscow. Svitolina had warned on Monday that she would refuse to play against Russians or players from Belarus, unless they sported neutral colors.
The ATP and WTA said in a statement that Russians and Belarusians could continue to participate in tournaments, but “not under the flag” of their country “until further notice”.
Russia has been the subject of a large number of sporting sanctions since the entry of its troops into Ukraine on Thursday, including the exclusion of the qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup.