Just last week, after beating Russian-Austrian player Anastasia Potapova, Elina Svitolina surprised fans at the net, not with a handshake, but by walking straight over to the umpire before waving to the crowd. And it happened again against Ekaterina Alexandrova. The 31-year-old stayed firm on her decision to skip the customary handshake with the Russian opponents, making it the second time in the tournament that Svitolina refused to follow the tradition.

As Svitolina clinched the match point against Alexandrova, she went straight to the chair umpire and shook her hand without shaking hands with Alexandrova. Svitolina then acknowledged the crowd, who came in numbers to support her, and waved at them.

The World No. 9 has refused to shake hands with Russian opponents ever since Russia has been involved in geopolitical tensions with Ukraine. She has also stated on multiple occasions that it is a matter of principle. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) also took action against Russian and Belarusian players by suspending their respective federations from ITF membership and international competitions.

This includes the Billie Jean King Cup and the Davis Cup. Individual players from both countries are allowed to play on the Tour, but they can’t represent Russia or Belarus by name or flag. They only compete as neutral athletes. This includes the likes of Aryna Sabalenka, Daniil Medvedev, Mirra Andreeva, Andrey Rublev and more.

Moreover, Svitolina denied shaking hands with her Australian Open semi-final opponent, Aryna Sabalenka, and even the officials supported her decision.

The organizers had displayed a message on the big screen informing the crowd about the same. Sabalenka had addressed the situation after the match and had said that she respected Svitolina’s decision. “They’ve been doing it for so long, it’s their decision, and I respect that,” she had said.

Svitolina had explained her decision after declining to shake hands with Anna Blinkova at the 2023 French Open. It was here that she was booed by some fans for snubbing the post-match handshake. “I am Ukrainian. I am standing for my country, doing anything possible to support men and women who are right now in the front line fighting for our land, our country,” she said.

Svitolina has extended her no-handshake policy to players with even tenuous ties to Russia. An example of this came just a few days ago at the Canadian Open when Svitolina didn’t shake hands with her second-round opponent.

Elina Svitolina snubs handshake with Anastasia Potapova at the Canadian Open

Following a dominant 6-1, 6-1 victory, Svitolina snubbed Potapova of the customary handshake at the net. What made this moment very surprising was Potapova’s nationality switch. Though born in Russia, Potapova switched to Austrian representation in 2025.

But this didn’t bring a change to Svitolina’s approach, and she didn’t hesitate in snubbing the Russian-born opponent. This means that she has now refused to shake hands with two opponents in Toronto. While the Ukrainian is definitely making a statement with her actions, she is also delivering strong performances on the court.

Svitolina has racked up four victories at the Canadian Open so far and has reached the semifinals. She has picked up her form on the hard courts and has been pretty convincing with her performances in the tournament so far.

The 31-year-old began her campaign with a hard-fought 6-7, 7-6, 6-4 victory over Jessica Bouzas Maneiro. Though Svitolina did look shaky in the first round, she followed it up with a comprehensive triumph against Potapova. Amanda Anisimova also proved to be no match for the Ukrainian as she recorded a solid 6-2, 6-4 win to secure a place in the quarterfinals.

The win against Alexandrova saw Svitolina set up a clash with Iga Swiatek in the semifinals. This will be their third meeting of the season, and Svitolina has emerged victorious in the previous two. Though Swiatek has a slender 4-3 lead in the H2H record, the momentum seems to be with the Ukrainian as she has racked up two wins in the matchup this year.