Daria KASATKINA: I was booed for showing respect for Svitolina

Russian tennis player Daria Kasatkina published a post on her Twitter after losing to Elina Svitolina (4:6, 6:7) in the 1/8 finals of the French Open tennis championship 2023:

“I leave Paris with a very bitter feeling. All these days, after every match that I played in Paris, I always appreciated and thanked the audience for their support and for being there for the players. But yesterday I was booed for simply being respectful of my opponent’s position and not shaking her hand.

Elina and I showed respect for each other after a tough match, but leaving the court like this was the worst part of yesterday. Be better, love each other. Don’t spread hate. Try to make this world a better place. I will love Roland Garros no matter what, always and forever. See you next year,” wrote Kasatkina.

After the end of the match, Daria shook hands with the referee, gave a thumbs up to Elina and went to her seat. Elina at that moment was just beginning to approach the net.

Note that Daria publicly condemned the war and left Russia in 2022.

Me and Elina showed respect to each other after a tough match but leaving the court like that was the worse part of yesterday. Be better, love each other. Don’t spread hate. Try to make this world better💜 I will love RG no matter what, always and forever. See u next year🇫🇷

— Daria Kasatkina (@DKasatkina) June 5, 2023