"This isn’t a matter of being lazy or sexist" - Andy Roddick defends his commentary on Elena Rybakina and Polina Kudermetova's Berlin clash
Andy Roddick has defended himself over the criticism of his commentary on Elena Rybakina and Polina Kudermetova's clash at the bett1open in Berlin.
Rybakina made her return to the tour at the WTA 500 event after a respiratory illness forced her withdrawal from the 2023 French Open. The defending Wimbledon champion made a winning start to her grass-court season, putting on a clinical performance to defeat Kudermetova 6-4, 6-2 in 66 minutes.
Following the match, a fan took to social media and called out Andy Roddick's commentary on Elena Rybakina and Polina Kudermetova's clash. The fan deemed the American "lazy and uninformed" for saying that he was unaware there were multiple Kudermetova's on the tour.
"The first thing Andy Roddick says when talking about the Rybakina/P. Kudermetova match is that he didn't know there were multiple Kudermetovas and that feels like an accurate summation of how male Tennis Channel commentators approach covering the WTA. Lazy and uninformed," the fan tweeted.
The first thing Andy Roddick says when talking about the Rybakina/P. Kudermetova match is that he didn't know there were multiple Kudermetovas and that feels like an accurate summation of how male Tennis Channel commentators approach covering the WTA.
Lazy and uninformed.
Roddick was referring to Polina Kudermetova's elder sister and World No. 13 Veronika Kudermetova.
Roddick defended himself against the accusation, rejecting the notion that his lack of awareness of Polina Kudermetova was due to laziness or sexism.
"Nope. There are lots of people ranked outside of the top 140 that we don’t see until they progress to top levels. This isn’t a matter of being lazy or sexist ……. There’s always a first time seeing a new player. Always," Roddick commented.
@sda0918 Nope. There are lots of people ranked outside of the top 140 that we don’t see until they progress to top levels. This isn’t a matter of being lazy or sexist ……. There’s always a first time seeing a new player. Always.
When another fan responded by stating that Kudermetova had been around the tour for a long time, Roddick pointed out that the the match in question was played by former World No. 9 Veronika Kudermetova's younger sister, who is ranked at World No. 142, not her more famous sister.
"So you’re actually committing the same crime as me. She has a younger sister who hasn’t been around much at all and isn’t as highly ranked …..," he responded.
@bitta91 So you’re actually committing the same crime as me. She has a younger sister who hasn’t been around much at all and isn’t as highly ranked …..
Roddick also rejected the fan's claim that he would never have made the same remarks about an ATP player.
"But you did the same thing. There are plenty of guys ranked close to 200 that I don’t know. You’re trying to paint me a certain way, but you did the same thing. Bye," he responded further.
@bitta91 But you did the same thing. There are plenty of guys ranked close to 200 that I don’t know. You’re trying to paint me a certain way, but you did the same thing. Bye
Elena Rybakina will be up against Donna Vekic in the second round of Berlin Open
With her dominant win over Polina Kudermetova, Elena Rybakina extended her winning streak on grass courts to 8 wins, dating back to her 2022 Wimbledon triumph.
The second seed will be up against Donna Vekic in the second round of the bett1open. Elena Rybakina leads 1-0 in her head-to-head against Vekic, having defeated the Croatian in straight sets at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
At the other end of the draw, top seed Aryna Sabalenka put on a clinical performace to oust Vera Zvonareva in straight sets, winning 6-3, 6-2, to advance to the second round.