Elena Rybakina is currently competing at the World Tennis League (WTL) ahead of the new season. Many of her fans were bemused to see the Kazakhstani's former coach, Stefano Vukov, at the tournament.
Rybakina is on Team Falcons at the WTL with Andrey Rublev, Denis Shapovalov, and Caroline Garcia. They faced a strong Team Hawks team on the opening day that included Aryna Sabalenka and Mirra Andreeva.
Despite losing the women's doubles with Garcia and the singles against Sabalenka 6-7 (each WTL match only contains one set), Rybakina still looked in good touch and there were encouraging signs for the new season. Team Falcons defeated the Hawks 29-26.
Rybakina had an even better day against Team Kites. The former Wimbledon champion won the doubles with Garcia before beating Simona Halep in the singles in a thoroughly enjoyable contest in Abu Dhabi.
Although she is looking to focus on being successful during the 2025 season, Rybakina may have been given a bittersweet reminder of the past when Vukov was seen attending Rublev's match against Team Hawks' Jordan Thompson.
Vukov was Rybakina's coach for over five years. The Croatian undoubtedly helped her become a better player. She went from playing ITF tournaments when he joined in 2019 to winning Wimbledon.
However, Vukov also received criticism from some analysts and fans for being harsh and aggressive to her during matches. Serena Williams' former coach, Rennae Stubbs, has also heard stories of him shouting at the 25-year-old in the gym.
Rybakina and Vukov unexpectedly split a few days before the US Open. In the announcement about it, the former world No. 2 gave no details about why the move was made and simply wished Vukov looked for the future.
Speculation raged for months afterward about the true reasons for the split. A well-known journalist reported that Ryabkina, who took two months off after parting with Vukov, suffered from psychological problems as a result of her time with him.
Rybakina returned to tennis at the WTA Finals. Many fans worried about her during the time she spent away from the sport, but the former Grand Slam champion insisted she was all good with Vukov when asked about it.
During the same press conference at the WTA Finals, Rybakina revealed Goran Ivanisevic would be her new coach. The 2001 Wimbledon champion helped Novak Djokovic win 10 Grand Slam titles as his coach from 2019 until March 2024.
Ivanisevic has posted on social media about his work with Rybakina during the off-season. That meant fans were shocked to see Vukov attending a match containing one of her teammates at the World Tennis League.
It is unclear why Vukov, who had kept a low profile since splitting with Rybakina, chose to attend the World Tennis League, especially a match involving the team Rybakina is on. There has been no confirmation about him working with another player since their split.
Several of Rybakina's fans reacted negatively on social media to Vukov's appearance, especially because of the speculation about him not treating her well. Some accused the Croatian of following Rybakina to make her uncomfortable.
However, it is important to note that there may have been a reason for Vukov's attendance that fans are unaware of. Whether that will be revealed remains to be seen.