“Then why not ban Chinese players as well” - Reilly Opelka defends his statements on Wimbledon’s ban on Russian and Belarusian players

Earlier this week, American tennis player Reilly Opelka said that the absence of top players at the upcoming Wimbledon Championships will leave a stain on any major accomplishments at the event.

Opelka was referring to the All England Lawn Tennis Club’s decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players from this year’s Championships, which prompted the ATP and WTA to strip ranking points from the tournament.

The American took to Twitter on Wednesday to express his views on the subject.

“Sport is the ultimate meritocracy. When you take some of the best players in the world out of the draw based on merit you erode the integrity of the event. It’s about the competitive advantage given to players, like myself by virtue to other great players not being able to play,” Opelka tweeted.

He also clarified that his views on the topic had nothing to do with the lack of ranking points at this year’s tournament.

“A lot of people seem to be missing the “point” it’s not about the “points”. I believe Wimbledon 2022 will be an inferior accomplishment due to the absence of the best possible field,” Opelka said.

Not all fans agreed with his sentiments, however, with one user telling him that tennis doesn’t matter in the face of a nation committing genocide.

The American responded by asking why there was no ban on Chinese players since there’s a "genocide taking place in China" as well.

“Then why not ban Chinese players as well?” Opelka asked. “Dave clearly lives a very sheltered life, to not even recognize genocide taking place in China.”

A British fan asked him to show some empathy in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the 24-year-old countered by pointing out that Great Britain is still buying energy from Russia.

“And I already feel uneasy being in a country thats still buying energy from Russia Speaking of “actually doing something against that,” Opelka said.

There was further furore over his statements, with some saying he missed the whole point behind the ban.

However, many fans also echoed the American's sentiments and were not in favor of the decision to ban players or remove ranking points from the oldest Grand Slam.