By Frank Dalleres
World No1 Aryna Sabalenka has accused the Women’s Tennis Association of showing disrespect to players in its staging of the current WTA Finals in Cancun.
Sabalenka complained that players had been unable to practise in the temporary arena until the day before the prestigious end-of-season tournament began on Sunday, and that when she did finally get to test the surface it was uneven to the point of being dangerous.
“I am very disappointed with the WTA and the experience so far at the WTA Finals. As a player, I feel really disrespected by the WTA. I think most of us do,” she wrote on social media.
“This is not the level of organisation we expect for the Finals. To be honest, I don’t feel safe moving on this court a lot of the time, the bounce is not consistent at all, and we weren’t able to practise on this court until yesterday for the first time.
“It’s just not acceptable to me with so much on the line and so much at stake.”
Sabalenka overcame her reservations about conditions to beat Maria Sakkari 6-0 6-1 on the first day of the prestigious end-of-season event, which features the top eight women’s players.
“I’m happy that I was able to stay focused tonight, overcome the conditions, and play well,” the Belarusian added.
Preparations for the tournament have been chaotic, with Cancun – the third different venue in as many years – only selected as the venue less than two months ago.
The WTA has been forced to take its flagship competition on the road since Shenzhen became untenable, first because of Covid-19 and then following the disappearance of Chinese player Peng Shuai.
In the other match on Sunday, American Jessica Pegula beat world No4 Elena Rybakina 7-5 6-2.
