At the season-ending Finals in Cancun, Marketa Vondrousova, the winner of Wimbledon, and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka took aim at the WTA and the condition of the court on Monday. Sabalenka claimed on Sunday that the hastily constructed court in the Mexican resort was unsafe and that she felt disrespected by the Women’s Tennis Association.
Vondrousova expressed her thoughts about the playing conditions in Cancun and said: “The court is honestly very bad. It’s very crazy. It bounces everywhere. I feel like it’s almost like bad clay or grass courts. It’s not even a hard court. I’m not saying that because I lost. I felt the same way in practice as well. I don’t think this court is good for WTA Finals, to be honest.”
She further added: “My first WTA Finals is not at all what I imagined. We work hard all year to get to the finals, and in the end, it’s just a disappointment. The stadium is not at all ready for the matches, and to me, it feels like the people from WTA are absolutely not interested in how we, who are supposed to play on that court, feel.”
After reports surfaced that Saudi Arabia was being considered to host the championship, Cancun was officially announced as the host city on September 7.
Marketa Vondrousova says the court in Cancun is ‘not even a hardcourt’ & not good for WTA Finals:
“The court is honestly very bad. It’s very crazy. It bounces everywhere. I feel like it’s almost like bad clay or grass courts. It’s not even a hardcourt. I’m not saying that… pic.twitter.com/FWdW3O30I8
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) October 31, 2023
Marketa Vondrousova in 2023
LLWLWWWWLW Now the world no.6 (career-high), Marketa played her last match on the 30th of October when she capitulated to world no.2 Iga Swiatek 7-6(3) 6-0 in the round robin in Cancun (draw).
This season Marketa owns an overall 40-15 record. Marketa conquered 1 title in Wimbledon.
Aryna Sabalenka in 2023
LLWWWWWWWL Currently the world no.1, Sabalenka played her last match on the 29th of October when she defeated world no.9 Maria Sakkari 6-0 6-1 in the round robin in Cancun (draw).
At the moment, during this season Aryna achieved an overall 54-12 win-loss record. The Belarussian has won 3 titles in 2023 in Adelaide, Australian Open and Madrid. The Belarussian was the finalist in Indian Wells, Stuttgart and U.S. Open.
Marketa Vondrousova and Aryna Sabalenka fought against each other 6 times. Their head to head is 4-2 for Sabalenka. Before, the last time they competed against each other, Aryna Sabalenka won 6-3 7-5 in the quarter in Adelaide (Adelaide International 1) on the 6th of January 2023.
Here are the highlights.
