Tennis player Rybakina refused to be photographed with the head of the WTA

Tennis player Elena Rybakina, who plays for Kazakhstan, did not name the reason for the refusal of a joint photo with the Director General of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), American Porsha Archer. The comment of the athlete leads the France24 TV channel.

On November 8, Rybakina won the Final WTA tournament for the first time. At the award ceremony, she refused to take a picture with Archer, while taking a photo with her rival in the title meeting, Arina Sobolenko from Belarus.

"I think we are all doing our job, and we had the opportunity to talk (about the situation with the suspension of tennis coach Stefano Vukova — approx. TASS), but in the end it never happened," Rybakina said. "We are all doing our job, and I think that will continue to be the case."

The tennis player added that she would like to keep to herself the reason for the rejection of the photo between her and Archer, TASS reports.

In the summer of 2024, Rybakina announced the termination of cooperation with Vukov and remained without a mentor until the start of the Final WTA tournament, at which Croat Goran Ivanisevich became her coach. In January 2025, the tennis player decided to return Vukov to her team, and later it became known that he was suspended by the WTA. According to The Athletic portal, the Croat committed "mental violence" against Rybakina, insulted her and persecuted her after the end of the collaboration. Sources of the portal reported that Vukov's methods led to health problems for the tennis player. In August 2025, the WTA allowed the specialist to return to professional coaching again.

Rybakina is 26 years old, she is in sixth position in the world ranking. The tennis player has won 11 WTA singles titles. In 2022, Rybakina became the winner of Wimbledon. Until June 2018, the tennis player represented Russia, she is a native of Moscow.