The Ukrainian did not shake hands after meeting the Belarusian player at the US Open ,
Marta Kostyuk .
KYIV. UkraineGate . 2 . September . 2022 | Society.
Ukrainian tennis player Marta Kostyuk did not shake hands with Belarusian player Victoria Azarenka after the match at the US Open on Thursday .
Details
Marta Kostiuk waited at the net with her racket raised, which Azarenka hit with her racket after winning 6-2, 6-3.
The publication notes that Belarus helped Russia launch its invasion of Ukraine in February, and Kostyuk said that since she saw the US Open draw, she thought she might have to play Azarenka in the second round.
“It’s quite personal,” Kostiuk said. “It wasn’t a personal match for me, because it was Vika specifically, but overall it wasn’t just an ordinary match that I play in a tournament.”
Asked about the traditional post-match handshake, Kostyuk said: “I just don’t think it’s right in the circumstances I’m in right now.”
Azarenka said she had already faced such a situation with a Ukrainian player when she played Diana Yastremska in Washington last month. “What is, that is. I just go on,” said Azarenka. “I can’t force anyone to shake my hand. It’s their decision.”
Kostiuk said she wrote Azarenka the day before the match to inform her that there would be no handshake. Azarenka responded in a text message, telling Kostyuk that she was no longer there, so Kostyuk dropped the topic because she wanted to convey the message personally, the publication writes.
Azarenka said she contacted all the Ukrainian players she had contact with in March after the invasion. Kostyuk is not one of them, but Azarenka said that she still tried.
Addition
Russian and Belarusian players were banned from Wimbledon because of the war. They are allowed to play in the US Open without indicating their countries or flags.
Source: Ukrgate
