Has the partnership between Elena Rybakina and Goran Ivanisevic already come to an end? Last week, surprising everyone, the Kazakh announced the return of historic coach Stefano Vukov to the team.
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A decision rejected directly by the WTA, which was almost forced to reveal that it had opened a procedure against the coach. The latter in fact received a suspension from the Womens Tennis Association for a potential violation of the Code of Conduct; a violation that will obviously have to be ascertained through investigations.
Rybakinas announcement surprised many insiders for one reason in particular. The former Wimbledon Championships winner has in fact hired one of the best coaches around -Ivanisevic - to relaunch herself in 2025. And she did not seem inclined to retrace her steps, before also bringing Vukov back into her team.
Ivanisevic himself, in an interview with Ben Rothenberg for Bounces, questioned the future of his collaboration with Rybakina.
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"It's a situation that doesn't do anyone any good. The investigation is still ongoing, so let's wait for the WTA to finish, then I can talk about everything. But until then... I've already spoken to Elena and told her what I think," said Novak Djokovic's former coach.
Ivanisevic's presence in Rybakina's team could be linked to the ruling on the Vukov case:
"For the moment I'm here. What will happen in a couple of days, I don't know. For the moment I'm here. I hope to stay and that everything goes well. It's a very strange situation, so I don't want to talk about it. I can only talk about it after the WTA's decision."
This new partnershipis no longer built on solid foundations and the future could divide Ivanisevic and Rybakina's paths prematurely.
