Elena Rybakina backs Wimbledon lifting Russian and Belarusian player ban

Defending champion Elena Rybakina expressed her support for Wimbledon's decision to allow Russian and Belarusian players to compete at the Grand Slam in 2023.

Rybakina's hopes of completing the Sunshine Double were dashed by Petra Kvitova in the Miami Open final. The first set was a very closely contested encounter as the pair exchanged breaks to force a tiebreak.

The Kazakh was unable to convert any of her five set points during the lengthy tiebreak, resulting in Kvitova winning 16-14. Kvitova then converted two break points in the second set to win the Miami Open title 7-6(14), 6-2.

During her post-match press conference, Rybakina expressed her happiness with her performances in Indian Wells and Miami.

"Yeah, was really tough first set, and I think it made a big difference starting the second set. Yeah, just happy with two weeks overall. Not so happy with the second set of course, but I think it's still positive one month here in U.S," she said.

When asked for her opinion on Wimbledon's decision to overturn the ban on Russian and Belarusian players, the World No. 7 expressed her support and called it the 'right' move.

"I mean, they have been playing like this for all the tournaments, so it was only Grand Slam they were not allowed, so I think that's the way that they are playing without any flags. I think it's right decision, I guess," she stated.

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"You never know how you're gonna come out on clay" - Elena Rybakina gears up for claycourt season

Elena Rybakina at the 2023 Miami Open

Elena Rybakina stated that her goal for the upcoming clay and grass court tournaments was to stay healthy above all else. She emphasized the importance of preparing well, especially for the upcoming claycourt season.

"Now the goal is still, as I said, to be healthy, because when even you play that good these two weeks, you never know how you're gonna come out on clay and you need to do good preparation also there. That's the most important," she said during the post-match press conference.

Despite feeling confident after her performances in Indian Wells and Miami, Rybakina acknowledged the need for proper preparation in her limited time and saw it as a positive challenge to be facing.

"Yeah, after so many matches, I feel confidence is just, yeah, as I said, to try to do good preparation. I won't say that there is again a lot of time, but that's a good problem to have," she added.