"He came after me" - Serena Williams' ex-coach Rennae Stubbs reveals her role in investigation into controversial Elena Rybakina-Stefano Vukov saga

Rennae Stubbs, a former tennis player and Serena William’s ex-coach, recently shared her perspective on the suspension of Stefano Vukov, the former coach of Elena Rybakina.

After a thorough investigation, the WTA imposed a one-year ban on Vukov for the allegations of mental abuse and misconduct during the whole coaching period with Rybakina. He will not be allowed to coach or participate in any WTA-related activities during this suspension.

There is reported evidence from members of Rybakina’s team that highlights instances of misconduct by her coach, which had a significant mental impact on her on multiple occasions. Reports suggest that Vukov even struck her with tennis balls, an act that constitutes physical abuse. The WTA is even said to have found that the coach and the player were even involved romantically which further made the equation ‘toxic’. Despite attempting to part ways with Vukov before the 2024 US Open, Rybakina was apparently persuaded by him to continue their professional relationship.

On the latest episode of Rennae Stubbs’ podcast, the Australian revealed her involvement in investigating Vukov’s case through comments she made on the podcast several years ago. She even claimed how he attempted to take legal action against her for the same.

“He came after me and wanted to sue me, OK, for saying things about him that were true, that have been now investigated for years are now true. He has been banned for a year now because what I told them years ago has been now backed up by several other people who are in her actual team," she said. [37:05]

Stubbs explained in detail the comments she made on him and the reasons behind making those comments, which provoked him to take legal action.

“I have seen him yelling at her, I could have been one of those witnesses. And I probably was one of those witnesses because they interviewed me years ago about him because I made comments on this podcast years ago about him. And I never said anything about him abusing her. I just said he was very negative. And I felt like with a positive coach, wow, how much better could she be? Imagine how good she could be with a really positive coach. And so those are the comments I made about him. And then he actually, contacted the WTA and wanted to come after me for making those comments,” Stubbs remarked. [36:30]

The doubles legend even stressed that Elena Rybakina would be better without him. Amid all the allegations and suspension, the Russian seems to stand in support of her former coach and says that he never mistreated her and shows her disappointment in how the WTA has handled the situation.

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“You would still be in Russia picking potatoes” - Rennae Stubbs points out a horrifying statement allegedly used by Stefano Vukov for Elena Rybakina

Rennae Stubbs - Source: Getty

On the podcast, Rennae Stubbs mentioned that she saw an alleged quote by Stefano Vukov for Elena Rybakina, which was published in an article by ‘The Athletic.’ She said:

“You would still be in Russia picking potatoes, that’s what he said to her. Now the difference is the WTA are getting factual information from team members of Elena Rybakina. So you think about it, there’s physios, there’s fitness trainers that have been with her for a long time that are now no longer with her. They saw the abuse, they saw the mental abuse. They saw him throwing tennis balls at her. That’s physical abuse. First of all, I have coached, I have been coached, I have seen other coaches, I know what abuse is and he is abusive to her, period.” [35:32]

Stubbs spoke from her personal experience as a player and a coach. She strongly believes that these were actions of hostility. Further, the statements and information available appear to show the severity of the case, based on which, the WTA decided to suspend Vukov for a year.