Russian and Belarusian tennis players will not be allowed to compete at Wimbledon this year, ESPN reports.
The decision to ban players from Russia and Belarus makes Wimbledon the first Slam to ban players from the two countries in response to Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine and Belarus’ close alliance with Russia. Wimbledon is the third Slam of the year.
Wimbledon organizers The All England Club (AELTC) said that the decision was made in order to limit Russia’s global influence “through the strongest means possible,” and that it would be “unacceptable” for the Russian regime to derive any benefits from the involvement of players in the championships.
World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev and women’s world No. 4 Aryna Sabalenka will no longer be playing in Wimbledon as a result.
Analysts say that this will have a big impact on both the men’s and women’s singles draws at Wimbledon. On the men’s side, this means that four Russian players and one Belarusian player will be prohibited. Medvedev — the Australian Open finalist — will be barred, as well as No. 8 Andrey Rublev, No. 24 Karen Khachanov, No. 30 Aslan Karatsev, and Belarusian player No. 42 Ilya Ivashka.
On the women’s, five of the top 40 will be banned, including Belarusian No. 4 Sabalenka, who reached the semifinals at Wimbledon last year. From Russia, No. 15 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, No. 26 Daria Kasatkina, and No. 29 Veronika Kudermetova are barred. No. 18, Belarusian Victoria Azarenkoa — the former world No. 1 — is also barred.
On March 1, the ATP and WTA tours and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced they would allow Russia and Belarus to continue competing in the tournaments, but only without reference to their nationality. Russia and Belarus were banned from team events including the Billie Jean King Cup and the Davis Cup.
But the pressure in the UK from politicians has meant Wimbledon took a firmer stance, and ultimately decided to ban the players completely.
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