Elena Rybakina has remained tight-lipped about her split from Stefano Vukov, but a journalist says she has psychological problems from working with him.
Rybakina shocked many tennis fans worldwide by splitting with Vukov a few days before the US Open. The pair had worked together for over five years and enjoyed success on the court.
The Kazakhstani was playing ITF events when she began her partnership with the Croatian. Just over three years later, Rybakina celebrated winning the 2022 Wimbledon Championships after beating Ons Jabeur in the final.
She also won WTA 1000 titles, reached 19 finals, and was as high as No. 3 in the rankings. No fan could dispute that Vukov helped Rybakina improve and become a force to be reckoned with on the WTA Tour.
However, Vukov's behavior during his player's matches was repeatedly criticized. He was accused of being needlessly harsh to the former Wimbledon winner while she competed.
That raised concerns about what Vukov could be like behind the scenes. Rybakina defended the Croatian on multiple occasions, saying he was trying to be encouraging and give her energy.
Those previous defenses did not prevent fans from speculating about what had happened when Rybakina suddenly split from Vukov. She gave few details in her announcement about the parting and dodged questions about it.
Ryabkina has not played since then, saying she is nursing a back injury. However, well-known journalist Sofya Tartakova has given somewhat shocking details about the world No. 4's split from Vukov.
Tartakova says the back injury is just a public explanation and that Rybakina is suffering from a lot of stress after working with Vukov for many years before finally deciding to stop.
"They said that she is having difficulties, back problems. That is the official reason... But as people who did not work with her, but were involved in her professional career, say, she is now under a lot of stress and it is all psychosomatic. She is now in a completely disorganized state, she cannot play."
The journalist explained that the split happened after Rybakina decided that Vukov's attitude toward her had not been correct, despite the Croatian flying to New York to continue their partnership.
"They say that Stefano actually came to the US Open, that he was in New York, was ready to continue working with her, but Lena decided that they would break up because of a very difficult... I don't want to say big words, not quite the correct attitude of her mentor towards her."
"That is, he "ate" her all the time, as people who surrounded Lena say. Her parents stood up for her, because she could not break this vicious cycle.... And now she is suffering and trying to get rid of psychological problems, so the situation is, of course, very difficult for her."
Tartakova also addressed the rumors about Vukov being banned from the WTA Tour, saying nothing has been confirmed, but fans can expect to find out whether that is true soon.
"No one has officially confirmed this yet. We will find out very soon, if he finds another protege, then this ban does not exist. But according to Vukov, as he positions himself, he does not have any ban."
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