A commentator during the Australian Open had a tough time pronouncing the name of Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina. The 25-year-old, who
is already regarded as one of the best players currently playing in women’s
tennis in the singles category, has cemented her spot in the third round of the
first Grand Slam of the year after beating America’s Iva Jovic.
During the match, a commentator had a tough time pronouncing
the name of Rybakina. The commentator ended up saying ‘something like that’ while
referring to the name of the 25-year-old. The video was then put on the social
media platform X — previously known as Twitter — which left the fans angry as
well.
“This is so rude. The WTA site has audio clips of the
players saying their name. It takes two seconds to review it beforehand,” one
fan wrote. “That is so disrespectful. It’s not even a hard name to pronounce.
Is this her first time watching tennis?,” another one wrote.
Rybakina will next face Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska in the
third round of the Australian Open. The 24-year-old cemented her spot in the
round of 32 after beating Danka Kovinic in straight sets with a score of 6-0,
6-1. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two players in professional
tennis.
Rybakina has an impressive record while playing at the
Australian Open. In 2023, she finished as the runner-up in Melbourne after lost
to reigning world number one Aryna Sabalenka with a score of 4–6, 6–3, 6–4.
Last year, she was knocked out after losing in the second round.
