Daria Kasatkina sends strongly-worded message days after facing online abuse over abandoning Russian nationality 

Daria Kasatkina, the Russian-born 12th-ranked player in the world, has offered her thanks for the support she's received after a tumultuous week. On Saturday (April 29), Kasatkina announced that the Australian government had accepted her application for permanent residency and that she'll be competing under an Aussie flag in future.

Kasatkina had been at odds with her home country ever since she came out as gay in 2022, and then criticized the Russian government for its military operation in Ukraine. Her stance in 2022 prompted an avalanche of online abuse, and her announcement this week has again brought her into the spotlight as a victim of bullying.

For her trouble, Kasatkina has been called "shameful", a "rat", and a "traitor" by online trolls, as reported by the dailymail.co.uk. Undeterred, the 27-year-old took to her X account to thank those people who had supported her decision as she wrote:

"I've been incredibly touched by all the positivity and support I've received since making my decision. It was far from an easy one but the positive responses from fans and players means the world to me, honestly thank you."

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Daria Kasatkina will immediately become Australia's top-ranked player

Miami Open Presented by Itau 2025 - Day 3 - Source: Getty

Daria Kasatkina's move to Australia will make her the country's No. 1 women's tennis player. She joins Kim Birrell, who's ranked 62, Maya Joint, 81, Ajla Tomljanović, 87, Olivia Gadecki, 100, as Australians in the women's top 100. She's now the country's highest-ranked player since Ashleigh Barty.

In her statement on X, Kasatkina went on to thank Tennis Australia, which has helped facilitate her change of nationality. She wrote:

"I’d like to clarify that my team approached Tennis Australia about the nationality switch, and they referred me to experts who could help me with the immigration process and also offered a letter of support for my application. I’m proud to now represent Australia and I hope to make everyone proud, on and off the court."

Kasatkina started the year well, reaching the quarterfinals of the Adelaide International, where she lost to an in-form Madison Keys. She then performed creditably at the Australian Open to post three wins before losing in the fourth round to Emma Navarro in a tight three-set match that could have gone either way.

The new Australian now plays at this week's Charleston Open, where she's seeded five. She'll hope to put the trials and tribulations of the last few days behind her, and get back to winning ways on the tennis court.