In May 2024, a Belgian movie titled Julie Keeps Quiet was released, dealing with a young tennis prodigy. The story featured a 15-year-old girl Julie Devriendt making huge strides in the racket sport under the guidance of a longtime coach at an academy. But things take a wild turn after her trainer, Jeremy, gets suspended following an investigation. Despite his ban, the protagonist stays silent over his suspicious behavior. Well, who thought life would draw an exact parallel with this fictional story almost a year later? Enter Elena Rybakina and her former coach Stefano Vukov.

For the uninitiated, Vukov just got an extended ban following an internal investigation by WTA. On February 12, the authority issued a statement saying, “The suspension remains in place. To protect the confidentiality and integrity of the investigation and its findings, the WTA will not provide further details. We remain committed to ensuring that all matters are handled in a fair and objective manner in accordance with the WTA Code of Conduct.” On the other hand, Rybakina still appears to be defending Vukov. Commenting on WTA’s decision, the 25-year-old said, “I’m just disappointed with the situation and how the process went,” following her R16 victory at the Qatar Open on Wednesday.

While Rybakina’s not backing down in speaking up for her former coach, an ex-WTA pro is happy over the news. Australian legend Rennae Stubbs didn’t mince words while reacting to WTA’s statement. In an episode of her podcast, dated February 15, she said, “I think, quite honestly, he should be banned forever on the WTA tour. He should not be allowed to be able to come on the tour and work with any girl because that’s his tendency.” But why is Stubbs so frustrated with the Croatian and his behavior? Well, there happens to be a solid reason.

She said, “I clearly was around this toxic environment with him and her quite often. I have spoken about it many times, and you know, people did say that it’s her decision.” Reflecting on Rybakina still trying to defend Vukov, Stubbs added, “You know there are a lot of cohesive controlled relationships that get really toxic and really bad, and do I think that she is in an environment that is not healthy for her? Absolutely! There’s no question about it.”

Rybakina parted with Vukov before the US Open in 2024. Initially, the reason behind the split wasn’t confirmed. Later, she joined forces with 24-time Slam winner Novak Djokovic’s ex-coach Goran Ivanisevic. However, the latter left her team last month after the Kazakh decided to reunite with her former trainer. The surprising move came right before her Australian Open campaign in early January. Once Rybakina’s run down under concluded, Ivanisevic moved away following a trial period of their collaboration.

On the other hand, Rybakina’s move to bring back Vukov resulted in WTA announcing an initial ban on him. In the first week of January, the agency confirmed “a provisional suspension” on the grounds of “breach of the WTA Code of Conduct.” But what about the player herself? Does she think he did anything wrong?

Elena Rybakina stays in a defensive mode for ex-coach despite WTA’s ban

Even when he was banned last month, Elena Rybakina chose to speak up for him. Ahead of her Australian Open campaign, she revealed, “I can only say, and I’ve said it already before, that he never mistreated me, or it was never anything like that,” reported Brisbane Times on January 4. Not only that, she even criticized the hate Vukov received online. “Of course, I’m not really happy with the situation,” said the 2022  Wimbledon champion. “I’m not happy with the comments which I see, especially from the people on the tour. It’s active coaches, commentators. I (don’t) think it’s fair, but the only thing I can say is he never mistreated me,” she added.

Her defense has been so aggressive that she didn’t even hesitate in calling out several notable figures. Take for example WTA icon Pam Shriver. The latter had urged her, back in 2023 during the Australian Open, to look for a different coach. Then last month, when Rybakina announced having Vukov back, Shriver wrote on X, “It’s time for our entire sport to finally stand up to known ab–e and cult-like manipulations of players. This is a very sad situation, and my prayers are with Elena Rybakina.”

Shriver’s concerns stemmed from her own, harrowing experience. In 2022, she revealed an “inappropriate and damaging relationship” she had with an ex-coach. She was just 17 back then. But it appears Rybakina’s views don’t align with the multiple Slam-winning legend.

Following Shriver’s remarks, the World No.7 didn’t take long to react. Speaking in a press conference, she said, “I get that one coach is Pam Shriver… I don’t know her personally. She never came to me. She never talked with me. I know her story. It’s sad, but it doesn’t mean other players are facing the same issues.” Continuing further, she added, “I don’t think it’s fair to make any comments like that. Especially being an active coach, commentator, journalist, and so on.”

The situation has now become extremely tough for the Kazakh tennis sensation. With Vukov being suspended, and there being no proper coach, it will be intriguing to see how she navigates her 2025 season. After the Australian Open, where she was eliminated in the fourth round, she’s not made a huge on-court impact. Last week, she reached the SF round of the Abu Dhabi Open, as a defending champion. However, her hopes to win the trophy again broke following a defeat against Belinda Bencic. The latter beat the Kazakh 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, and eventually went on to win the title as well.

After Abu Dhabi, Rybakina’s next stop was the Qatar Open. But here, too, she couldn’t make a deep run. In the quarterfinal, former World No.1 Iga Swiatek beat her 6-2, 7-5 in straight sets. What are your thoughts on her prospects going forward this season? Let us know in the comments below.