Terrible stuff happened in Cincinnati on Sunday. During the qualification match between Anastasia Potapova and Anna Kalinskaya (both Russian), a tennis fan named Lola was watching the match wrapped in a Ukrainian flag. Even if Lola was silent, she was asked to leave.
As reported by well-known tennis reporter Ben Rothenberg, a security marshal aggressively urged Lola to leave the court, saying that he would have called the police.
According to Rothenberg, the head of security “pulled out a rules document and told her that her flag was above regulation size, which is 18×18 inches” which was obviously not the cause of the quarrel. Also, this is a rule that is not really applied with regularity.
Video of some of this incident surfaced hours later on social media, via @trashytennispic.twitter.com/bYlFL38L9X
— Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) August 15, 2022
Did a player ask for it?
Ben added: “This, of course, was not the issue that had started this confrontation, which was a WTA umpire acting on a Russian player’s complaint about what the flag represented.”
Tennis has not been consistent in how it has handled issues regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as we know, both in terms of policies and in symbolic displays of support.
But this incident, I believe, is a clear misstep.
(12/12)
— Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) August 15, 2022
Anastasia Potapova in 2022
Now ranked no.54, Anastasia played her last match on the 14th of August when she capitulated to world no.69 Anna Kalinskaya 7-5 6-1 in the qualifications in Cincinnati (draw).
This season the Russian achieved a 29-18 win-loss record. Potapova has won 1 title in Istanbul. Anastasia reached the final in Prague.
Potapova has scheduled to compete next in Cleveland (Tennis in the Land). She will commence the tournament from the main draw on the 21st of August. She is also scheduled to play in U.S. Open (U.S. Open). The main draw will start on the 29th of August.
Kalinskaya in Cincinnati, ranking, and results in 2022
Currently the world no.69 (career-high), the Russian owns a composed 21-16 match record in 2022. Kalinskaya is now competing in Cincinnati where she toppled the world no.93 Tatjana Maria 6-0 6-1 and the world no.54 Anastasia Potapova 7-5 6-1.
Anna Kalinskaya will face the world no.26 Martina Trevisan in the 1st round. Their current record is 1-0 for Kalinskaya.
Kalinskaya is scheduled to compete next in U.S. Open (U.S. Open). She will start to play the tournament from the main draw on the 29th of August.
Kalinskaya is expected to play next in Cleveland (Tennis in the Land). She is currently an alternate. The main draw will start on the 21st of August.
Anastasia Potapova and Anna Kalinskaya fought against each other just twice. Their current head to head is 2-0 for Kalinskaya. Previously, the last time they played each other, Anna Kalinskaya won 7-5 6-1 in the qualifications in Cincinnati (Western & Southern Open) on the 14th of August 2022.
