In a surprising turn of events, Moscow-born Varvara Gracheva has set her sights on representing her new home country of France.
Currently ranked 54th in the world, Gracheva would like to represent France already at Roland Garros this year. Sources from L'Equipe have confirmed that the 22-year-old has officially applied for French citizenship, a decision believed to be unrelated to Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year, which resulted in a ban of Russian and Belarusian players from last year's Wimbledon.
Since moving to France in 2016, Gracheva has been honing her skills at a training facility in Cannes. Her application for naturalization was completed on March 5th and submitted to the Ministry of Interior, the government department responsible for citizenship decisions.
While the timeline for the final decision remains uncertain, Gracheva's burgeoning career in the tennis world has captured the attention of French sports enthusiasts as she may become the new French No. 2 on the WTA Tour.
If her application is approved, Gracheva would become the second-highest ranked French player in the WTA Tour, trailing only Caroline Garcia. France currently boasts three top 100 players: Garcia at No. 4, Alizé Cornet at No. 66, and Océane Dodin at No. 93. Gracheva's switch of allegiance could significantly bolster the nation's strength in team competitions.
At the ongoing Miami Open, Gracheva is scheduled to face Petra Kvitova in the fourth round of the event. Although she is yet to claim a WTA title, Gracheva has already made waves this season by defeating three Top 10 opponents, including two victories over Daria Kasatkina and one against Ons Jabeur.
The closest that Gracheva got to winning a title was at this year's ATX Open in Austin, which ended with a final loss to Marta Kostyuk from Ukraine. After the match, there was no handshake or shared photoshoot due to the nature of the match.
As Gracheva awaits the verdict on her citizenship application, the tennis world will be watching with bated breath to see if she can continue her meteoric rise in the rankings while proudly wearing the French colors at Roland Garros.
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