Elena Rybakina bursts into tears while admitting her parents would be ‘super proud’ of her for making history in the Wimbledon final… after they were prevented from travelling to the UK from Russia to watch her topple Ons Jabeur
- Elena Rybakina got the better of Ons Jabeur in Saturday’s Wimbledon final
- The 23-year-old star became Kazakhstan’s first ever Grand Slam champion
- While living in Russia, her parents were unable to fly to the UK to watch her play
- Rybakina fought back the tears while admitting they will be ‘super proud’ of her
An emotional Elena Rybakina fought back the tears after admitting her parents would be ‘super proud’ of her victory in the Wimbledon final on Saturday evening.
Rybakina came from behind to beat Tunisia’s world No 2 Ons Jabeur 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 in the women’s singles final, a win which crowned her as Kazakhstan’s first ever Grand Slam champion.
It was a historic victory for the 23-year-old, who switched allegiances from Russia to Kazakhstan back in 2018 despite being born in Moscow.
A teary Elena Rybakina admitted her parents would be ‘super proud’ of her Wimbledon victory
While currently residing in Russia, Rybakina’s parents were not granted visas in time to fly to London and watch their daughter contest Saturday’s Wimbledon final.
During her post-match press conference the new champion was asked if she had spoken with them after beating Jabeur, which she was yet to do.
Rybakina became Kazakhstan’s first ever Grand Slam champion at Wimbledon
And when quizzed on what her parents’ reaction would be, she replied: ‘Probably they would be super proud’ before shedding a few tears.
Rybakina wiped away the tears and then drew laughter from reporters by joking: ‘You wanted to see emotion!’
By prevailing in the 2022 Wimbledon showpiece, Rybakina has become the youngest woman champion since a 21-year-old Petra Kvitova back in 2011.
Nevertheless, her victory on Saturday has sparked controversy given her links to Russia, whose representatives were banned from this year’s tournament.
Asked if she was concerned that Vladimir Putin and Co would try to politicise her win, Rybakina said: ‘I’ve been playing for Kazakhstan for a long time. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I can’t do anything about this.’
She also added: ‘I was super nervous before the match, during the match and I’m happy it’s finished to be honest.
‘I want to thank the crowd for the support, it was unbelievable these two weeks,’ she said. ‘For sure it’s a fairytale. I’m going to remember today forever.’
After her win, Rybakina was emotional when asked how her parents would have reacted to it
The Russian-born star’s parents were unable to receive visas to watch her over in the UK
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