© Getty Images Sport – Chris Hyde
Elena Rybakina admits she does not really enjoy being in the spotlight and having people talk a lot about her.
Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, started her 2023 season with a bang after winning the Brisbane International without a dropped set. In the Brisbane final, Rybakina delivered a very impressive performance as she destroyed world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka 6-0 6-3.
Rybakina’s outstanding Brisbane run instantly made the Kazakh as one of the top favorites for the Australian Open title. When asked about how people would talk about her this week, Rybakina admitted she would prefer not to be at the center of attention.
“Honestly, guys, I don’t enjoy this part of our job so much. First of all, I maybe didn’t get as much attention as other players. Still if I have to do some kind of stuff outside of the court, it’s something I’m trying to improve as much as improvement on the court. Same with this kind of stuff,” Rybakina said.
Rybakina hopes she won’t be scheduled for a smaller court again
The Australian Open organizers scheduling Rybakina’s 2023 first-round match against Elisabetta Cocciaretto on Court 13 drew lots of attention. At the time, many thought that it was disrespectful to schedule the reigning Wimbledon champion on an outside court.
But Rybakina ended up winning that match and later making the final before losing in tight three sets to Aryna Sabalenka. Ahead of this year’s Australian Open, Rybakina admits she would prefer to have her matches scheduled for the main courts at Melbourne Park.
“Well, I hope I’m going to start on the big court this year. Of course before I was a bit upset why I’m playing on that court [13], not on another one,” Rybakina said.
While Rybakina would love to play her matches on the main courts, she underlined that “by now I don’t really care on which court I’m going to play.” Considering how Rybakina has played over the last year, it is safe to say that the Kazakh will be playing all of her Australian Open matches this year on the main courts.
