"Maybe they had such a fight that Elena Rybakina approached WTA" - Aryna Sabalenka's coach Anton Dubrov speculates about Stefano Vukov's reported ban
Aryna Sabalenka's coach Anton Dubrov has shared his thoughts on Elena Rybakina's former coach Stefano Vukov's removal from the WTA's official coaches list and reported ban from tour. Dubrov also speculated about the potential reasons behind such a decision.
Rybakina announced her split with Vukov just days before the US Open. The scrutiny surrounding the abrupt end of their partnership intensified when tennis journalist Sonya Tartakova made shocking claims about the "pressure, insults, and bad words" that the World No. 4 endured from Vukov.
In a recent interview with Championat, Aryna Sabalenka's coach Anton Dubrov weighed in on these reports, revealing that the issue wasn't discussed openly on tour because coaching teams respected one another's privacy.
"I saw it on social networks. This is not discussed within the tour. Since tennis is an individual sport, the teams remain within themselves due to competition. And it is rare that you enter into another team’s personal spaces," Dubrov said.
Nevertheless, Dubrov speculated about the reasons behind Vukov's reported ban from the tour, suggesting that the Croatian may have asked to be removed from the official list in a "fit of emotion" or that Rybakina could have made the request to the WTA after a "fight" with her former coach.
"This may be so, but I don’t understand what the prerequisites could be. Sometimes, when a person finishes working with someone, he can write to the WTA in a fit of emotion, asking them to remove him from everything. Maybe it was his request. Maybe they had such a fight that she (Elena Rybakina) approached the WTA and said to remove his name, that he was coaching her," he said.
Aryna Sabalenka's coach also disclosed that he hadn't discussed the issue with Vukov because he didn't want to interfere in his and Elena Rybakina's "internal matters" but would reach out to the Croatian if no further information became available.
"There were internal matters. This was during the US Open, I didn’t really want to write to him, because I thought I’d stay as realistic as possible and keep the attention on my people. If there’s no news, I’ll write to Stefano, ask how he is," he said.
"When we met at tournaments, Elena Rybakina would just say 'Immune system is low'" - Aryna Sabalenka's coach Anton Dubrov
During the same interview, Aryna Sabalenka's coach Anton Dubrov spoke about Elena Rybakina's recurring injury issues, disclosing that while their teams enjoyed an amiable relationship on the court, they didn't discuss personal matters like injuries.
"We communicate well on the courts, but we don't go too far in personal matters. Injuries, for example, are not discussed. What has been happening in recent months - there's clearly something. If she wants, she'll talk about it," he said.
Dubrov also revealed that when they encountered the World No. 4 at tournaments, she attributed her health issues to a weakened immune system.
"Maybe motivation or health. When we met at tournaments, she might not feel so good. She would just say: "Immune system is low." Neither I nor anyone from the team knows. We didn't write to her personally, because we don't think it's quite right," he added.
Elena Rybakina's fitness issues forced her to withdraw from the ongoing 2024 China Open, where Aryna Sabalenka has advanced to the third round. The Belarusian will battle it out against Ashlyn Krueger for a place in the fourth round of the WTA 1000 event.