The Defiant Tennis Star: Marta Kostyuk’s Stand Against Aggression

There were images that went around the tennis world at the beginning of March this year. At the women’s tour tournament in Austin, Texas, Marta Kostjuk and Varvara Gracheva met in the final. This duel was explosive because Kostyuk comes from Ukraine and Gracheva was still competing for Russia at the time; she was born in Moscow. Kostjuk prevailed 6:3, 7:5, it was her first tournament success at WTA level, the highest in tennis. First she sank to the ground and appeared to be shedding tears, as the television images captured. It was a moment that happens often enough in this individual sport.

But then something unusual happened: no handshake at the net, no shared photo. Instead: a statement from Kostyuk that underlined how much this player was also in a different, higher battle. “I want,” she said, “to dedicate this title to Ukraine and all the people who are fighting and dying right now.”

Since this appearance at the latest, the industry has known that the now 21-year-old Kostjuk from Kiev knows how to use platforms to send her messages. And she is a courageous woman who does not retreat into the supposedly safe bubble of the industry and puts on blinders, but rather takes a stand – and strongly denounces the Russian war of aggression. Since then, she has not let up in her protest efforts.

Marta Kostyuk was booed in Paris

At the end of May, just two and a half months later, she refused a handshake on the biggest stage possible, on the Court Philippe-Chatrier at the French Open in Paris, after her defeat against world number two Aryna Sabalenka. Sabalenka comes from Belarus, the country that supports Russia’s war against Ukraine. This action caused turbulence at the time, as many French spectators apparently did not know that the Ukrainian players were not shaking hands with opponents from the two warmongering countries in protest – they whistled and booed the supposedly rude Kostjuk. However, she appeared unshakable and then called on Sabalenka to finally take a stand against the aggressors as a prominent person.

Even now, more than half a year later, Kostyuk has not changed course. She is certainly not an ordinary player, and a match waiver on her part has now ensured that an insignificant, tiny invitation tournament in France has become a political issue, in two respects.

It’s actually the so-called play-free period in professional tennis at the moment, but the trend is that people are always playing somewhere, even if they are exhibition matches. Like just now in the small town of Bourg-de-Péage in the Drôme department, where some decent female tennis players were supposed to compete with each other. But suddenly, due to a chain of events, things became complicated.

Kostjuk came into the game after Croatian Donna Vekic was unable to compete in the final due to shoulder problems – the Ukrainian stepped in, at least that was the plan. First, the final opponent had to be determined. Fatefully, this could have been Gracheva, who was very familiar to her – a duel with her would have been less of a problem this time. The 23-year-old broke away from Russia in June and has been racing under the French flag ever since. However: Gracheva lost in the semifinals against Mirra Andreeva.

The Frenchman Yanis Ghazouani Durand will take part in the final – he is number 1145 in the world rankings

The 16-year-old Andrejewa is considered one of the greatest talents in women’s tennis; she reached the round of 16 at Wimbledon in the summer. But she is also Russian, and so Kostyuk, it seemed, went a step further than usual – and quickly withdrew her participation in the final. It was said that she did not want to comment for the time being. Allegedly, Kostyuk’s withdrawal was also due to threats she received on social media, reported the Italian online medium Ubitennis.

Either way, the case once again showed the tennis scene that, in view of the war, there can be no talk of normalization on the tour. Even if some sports officials would like to see it differently. Kostyuk’s withdrawal has no sporting consequences for her; there were no world ranking points. The organizer initially responded with a statement before the final, saying: “For reasons beyond our control and given the geopolitical context in Ukraine, Marta Kostyuk will not be able to take part in the final of the sixth edition of the Negometal Open “, it said, and continued: “We have done our best to activate our network of professional players, but unfortunately time is too short to find a replacement.”

He was eventually found, but no woman was found. The 23-year-old French professional Yanis Ghazouani Durand competed in the final against Andrejewa, and suddenly this show event went down in history again in a different way. Because duels between the two sexes rarely occur, at least official ones. The most famous is undoubtedly the Battle of Sexes in 1973 between Margaret Court and Bobby Riggs, when the 55-year-old defeated the 30-year-old 6:2, 6:1.

Two legendary training sets that Karsten Braasch, a left-hander with an unorthodox playing style (and a penchant for cigarettes), completed in Melbourne in 1998 are still known to tennis connoisseurs. The then 31-year-old German from Marl first won 6:1 against Serena Williams and then 6:2 against her sister Venus, where Serena was only 16 years old and Venus was 17; both were at the beginning of their unique careers.

The final in Bourg-de-Péage, which was won by Ghazouani Durand – currently 1,146th in the individual world rankings – proved that men simply have an advantage because of their physique. He defeated Andreeva, 57th in the women’s ranking, 7:5, 6:2.

2023-12-19 14:24:58
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