Teenage player investigated over Australian Open act

A scandal has erupted at the Australian Open with a 16-year-old player under investigation over an on-court act.

The handshake at the Australian Open.

A scandal has erupted at the Australian Open with a teenage player investigated over a handshake incident.

Sixteen-year-old Ukrainian Yelyzaveta Kotliar is under investigation by her home country’s tennis federation after she was seen shaking hands with Russia’s Vlada Mincheva following their round-one match at Melbourne Park.

The burning issue of relations between Russian and Ukrainian players has divided the world since the start of the war between the two countries.

It played out in brutal fashion at the 2023 French Open with repeated handshake snubs and hostile moments shared between competing players.

The issue has continued to spark tension at Melbourne Park this week. It was the reason Belarusian tennis star Victoria Azarenka — a former Aussie Open champ — shut down questions during her press conference following her fourth round loss to Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska.

The situation took another twist this week with confirmation the Ukrainian Tennis Federation is looking into Kotliar’s exchange with her Russian opponent where the pair shook hands following Mincheva’s 6-2 6-4 victory.

The governing body described it as an “unpleasant incident” and said the teenager had made a mistake.

Her father Konstantin Kotliar has since addressed the issue.

“The atmosphere here is extraordinary, which in itself puts a lot of pressure on the athletes,” he said in a statement released by the UTF.

The handshake at the Australian Open.

“At the beginning of your career, it’s hard to cope with this and not be nervous. Unfortunately, my daughter didn’t feel calm, her emotions were running high, so she wasn’t completely in control of her behaviour.

“She automatically performed the post-match ritual, not realising that behind the net there was a representative of the country who launched the attack on our homeland.

“It was definitely a mistake that Liza regrets and assures us that she will never allow anything like that to happen again.”

Earlier, former world No. 1 Azarenka was involved in a frosty moment when asked about the pressure she felt playing Yastremska.

“Did you have any additional pressure because the opponent was Ukrainian? How do you feel about the atmosphere of the fans?” a reporter asked.

Azarenka ignored the first part of the question and said: “The atmosphere was good. I always enjoy playing in Australia. I think it was great. The stadium is always fun. I always have so much support here.

“Yeah, I wish I could have played just longer here, but it wasn’t meant to be.”

Victoria Azarenka in her post-match press conference on January 22. Picture: Australian Open YouTube

There was then an inaudible question, which the two-time Australian Open champion replied with: “I don’t care.”

The reporter didn’t stop there, asking again: “Did you feel any additional pressure because the opponent is Ukrainian?”

Azarenka simply said “next” and turned away as the moderator asked for the next question.

It is the second year players from Russia and Belarus are only allowed to compete at Melbourne Park as neutral players and not under the name or flag of their country to condemn the invasion of Ukraine.

On the graphics on the TV coverage, a blue space where the flag of a player’s country is usually displayed is being used for Russian and Belarusian players.

Tennis Australia also introduced a blanket ban on Russian and Belarusian flags in Melbourne Park last year, after a Russian flag was displayed courtside during a match featuring a Ukrainian player.

Originally published as Teenage player investigated over Australian Open act