Elena Rybakina's Coach Vukov Remains Suspended After WTA's Investigation Concludes
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Elena Rybakina won't be able to travel with her coach, Stefano Vukov, to the tournaments after his suspension was confirmed by the WTA, even after their investigation.
Unfortunately for Rybakina, her relationship with her coach has been in the spotlight in recent months instead of her tennis. During the Kazakhstani player's career, there have been multiple reports that Vukov hasn't acted nicely towards Rybakina.
In August last year, the two parted ways, and it seemed that there wouldn't be any more noise surrounding Rybakina's team. But things started rapidly developing after that.
At first, there were some rumors that Vukov could have been banned by the WTA, but that wasn't confirmed. An even more shocking development came when Rybakina announced that she once again hired Vukov earlier this year.
The decision of the former Wimbledon champion shocked the tennis world, and that shock became even bigger only a few hours later when it was confirmed that Vukov was provisionally suspended by the WTA.
The reason for the provisional suspension was the WTA's investigation of the 37-year-old coach's behavior. That has now concluded, and the WTA released an official statement.
The statement confirmed that the investigation into the breach of the "WTA Code of Conduct" has ended, and even after the investigation, Vukov remains suspended.
"The WTA confirms that the independent investigation into a potential breach of the WTA Code of Conduct by Stefano Vukov has concluded. Following this process, the suspension remains in place."
Unfortunately, that resolution means that Vukov's behavior towards Rybakina was indeed likely as described by many insiders.
At the same time, the WTA refused to provide any more details about their findings. There are also no details as to how long the suspension should take place or what are the next steps that the WTA plans to take.
"To protect the confidentiality and integrity of the investigation and its findings, the WTA will not provide further details. We remain committed to ensuring that all matters are handled in a fair and objective manner in accordance with the WTA Code of Conduct."
At the moment, there isn't a lot known, but this situation remains very weird and mysterious. Rybakina said multiple times that she was not happy about the investigation, but since the WTA suspended Vukov, there was likely a reason for the investigation to take place.
The WTA World No. 7 player will try to focus on her tennis even without Vukov in her team. She is currently competing at the 2025 Qatar Open in Doha, where she'll meet Rebecca Sramkova in the third round of the tournament.
