Ukrainian tennis star Oleksandra Oliynykova has been making headlines for her distaste towards Belarusian and Russian counterparts, Aryna Sabalenka and Daniil Medvedev, respectively. After making the main draw at the Australian Open, Oliynykova used the platform to shed light on the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia.
However, in her recent Instagram posts, she reveals receiving threats from the WTA to avoid making personalized statements or face a fine or worse. She slammed Sabalenka for supporting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and criticized Medvedev for participating in an exhibition organized by Gazprom, a major Russian, majority state-owned energy corporation.
An X user reshared Oliynykova’s messages on Instagram. Oliynykova is not at ease with players from Russia and Belarus participating, as the WTA tour forces her to exercise restraint from slamming the same players, who are allegedly participating in Russian propaganda.
“Those who were supposed to protect me — and yes, I mean the WTA — have, over the past two months, caused me immense psychological harm, and now I am trying to recover,” Oliynykova wrote. “I saw that people were hearing me, and another pain was that, because of the imposed censorship, I felt a barrier between myself and the fans — I could not speak to them, and it created an inner urge to withdraw completely. I will not accept being forced into silence. I know that no matter who tries to convince me otherwise, human solidarity will protect me.”
Fans are not convinced by Oliynykova’s views, as most believe players have nothing to do with war.
“She can’t say the players should be punished. They are not responsible for that war. She think she’s entitled to say whatever,” one fan wrote.
“basically, she’s crying because she hasn’t been allowed to call Sabalenka and other Russian/Belarusian players war criminals,” one fan broke it down.
“mixes a lot of things and for some reason believes that the WTA is going to give her a license to defame Russian players in every press conference, you can’t go around saying that people like Sabalenka or Shnaider actively participate in financing the Ukraine war,” another fan remarked.
“If there’s anything heavier than a black hole, it’s the comments and actions of Ukrainian tennis players facing off against Russian/Belarusian players… Then you see them in Qatar enjoying the high life or even some being supporters of the Zionist genocide,” one fan wrote.
“A man can talk and focus his life around war if that’s what he wants, no one knows more than they do, it’s valid, what he can’t do is drag his professional colleagues into those same things, which is what he’s been doing,” one fan commented.
Aryna Sabalenka’s Stance on Ukrainian Players Unwilling To Shake Hands
Whenever Aryna Sabalenka is up against a player from Ukraine, she is ignored for the handshake. This has been happening since the onset of the Russia-Ukraine war. In the Australian Open semifinals, Elina Svitolina refused to shake hands as a symbolic protest against the war in Ukraine.
However, Sabalenka has maintained consistent views on the sport. She does not support war and hopes for peace too. If the Ukrainian counterparts don’t want to shake hands with her, she accepts the reality, knowing she has no control over the war.
Read More News:
Serena Williams Makes Rare Public Comment as Allyson Felix Targets 2028 Olympics at Age 40
College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in tennis, college football, men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball, and college baseball!
