Wimbledon rejected my peace gesture in Ukraine, says Russian ace – RT Sport News
Andrey Rublev says all his offers for a Russian player ban solution have been rejected
Andrey Rublev has revealed he offered to play doubles at Wimbledon alongside a Ukrainian player as one of the solutions to the ban issued against Russians and Belarusians at the London Grand Slam.
Russian ace Rublev and fellow countrymen such as world number one Daniil Medvedev were forced to miss the centerpiece of the grass court after organizers at the All England Club banned them due to the conflict in Ukraine.
Defending the decision, Wimbledon bosses said the move was in line with UK government guidelines and argued that allowing Rublev to compete would somehow give Russian leaders a propaganda victory.
In a YouTube interview posted on Monday, world number eight Rublev said he had offered several solutions to circumvent the ban, but to no avail.
“We have offered options that could somehow help in this situation,” said Rublev.
« We offered to play a couple or mixed doubles with a Ukrainian player, we offered not to go to the award ceremony [if we won].
« We really wanted to use the tennis platform to show the importance of world peace. »
According to the 24-year-old, the suggestions all fell on deaf ears.
“There was only one answer [from Wimbledon] – the Russian government will use the results of the Russians against everyone.
“No matter what arguments you give, the answer from Wimbledon was just that,” Rublev told interviewer Vitya Kravchenko.
Rublev has previously described the Wimbledon ban as « discriminatory » and said the tournament would have been better off sending cash prizes to help victims of the conflict.
Rublev, who scribbled a « no war please » message on camera at an event in Dubai in February, also said he could have used his platform at Wimbledon to send a message from the court.
The Moscow-born star hasn’t ruled out a change of nationality if bans on Russian players become even more restrictive.
« If we’re banned everywhere in all tournaments and I want to continue my career, then that’s one of the ways out of the situation, » said Rublev.
« I won the Olympics in mixed doubles [for the Russian team]. I want to believe that I will still play in the Olympics. I want to believe it. And I’m extremely grateful to have managed to win the gold medal.
A citizenship change is also something Russian female star Daria Kasatkina didn’t rule out when she spoke to Kravchenko as part of the same YouTube video.
“The Billie Jean King Cup was taken away from us… With the Olympics, nothing is clear, and that’s in two years. In short, we are hermits. I don’t know what’s next, » declared the world number 12.
Asked about a possible passport change, Kasatkina replied: « We will see. »
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Talking about 2024 Russian Olympics ban is premature – tennis boss
The women’s WTA and men’s ATP tours allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to continue playing as neutrals.
Both organizations reacted angrily to the Wimbledon ban, stripping the tournament of ranking points in response.
The WTA also imposed a collective fine of $1 million on the All England Club and the UK’s Lawn Tennis Association (LTA).
Wimbledon is the only one of the four Grand Slam tournaments to ban players from Russia and Belarus, although the ITF has banned both countries from participating in team events such as the Billie Jean King Cup and the Davis Cup.
Many have pointed out the irony that a Russian-born star ended up winning the women’s singles title at Wimbledon this year.
Elena Rybakina, who has represented Kazakhstan since 2018, defeated Ons Jabeur of Tunisia in the final to claim a first Grand Slam crown.
rt
