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At the end of the Roland Garros 2023 round of 16 between the Ukrainian Elina Svitolina and the Russian Daria Kasatkina, the two tennis players did not shake hands. it is now the custom on the Tour, especially in the female one, where the two nationalities are highly represented.
At the end of this match, surprisingly won by the Ukrainian tennis player, however, things went differently, they went beyond appearances. In fact, Svitolina had already thanked Kasatkina at the press conference for the support that the Russian tennis player has given to the Ukrainian cause in recent months, always taking a position against the war in Ukraine.
For this reason, after the failed handshake, Kasatkina gave a thumbs up to congratulate Svitolina on her victory. The winner of the Rome tournament replied, raising her thumb towards her opponent. A rare scene, starting from February 24, 2022, the begin of the war.
Although the scene was highly respected, the Paris crowd did not understand the situation. They only saw the Russian leave the court, without a handshake, not understanding the context in which this situation developed. Therefore, boos were sent to Daria Kasatkina as she left the court.
The Russian tennis player responded on social media, explaining the situation. Daria wrote on Twitter: "I leave Paris with a very bitter feeling. In all these days, after every match I played in Paris, I always appreciated and thanked the crowd for their support and for being there for the players.
But yesterday I was booed just for respecting the position of my opponents not to shake hands. Elina and I showed mutual respect after a difficult match, but leaving the pitch like that was the worst part of yesterday. Be better, love each other.
Don't spread hate. Try to make this world better. I will love RG no matter what, always and forever. See you next year."
Leaving Paris with a very bitter feeling. All this days, after every match I’ve played in Paris I always appreciate and thanked crowd for support and being there for the players.
But yesterday I was booed for just being respectful on my opponents position not to shake hands. [1] — Daria Kasatkina (@DKasatkina) June 5, 2023
