Elena Rybakina Makes a Shocking Coaching Move Days After US Open Exit

“Vukov and Elena are close, he will always be there. Stefano and I talk a lot, we are on the same wavelength: it’s not a problem to have two coaches, it’s almost a trend now.” Coach David Sanguinetti seemed pretty confident with his stance in Elena Rybakina’s team back in February. But the storyline has taken a massive curve. And it does not favor the former Italian tennis player-turned-coach. 

Well, the Kazakh athlete has now decided that she does not want to continue training with Sanguinetti. As per the reports by Spazio Tennis, she’ll continue to work with Stefano Vukov as her sole coach moving forward. It’s worth noting that Sanguinetti apparently didn’t have enough time to work with the Kazakh star. February 2025 marked the beginning of Sanguinetti’s tenure with Elena Rybakina, replacing Goran Ivanisevic, who joined Rybakina’s team right after Vukov’s suspension in 2024.

Reflecting on the decision to replace Ivanisevic with Sanguinetti, during the Australian Open, she said, “This year I tried with a new coach, Didn’t work out in the beginning, so the results were not the same as previous years. But for now, I think we are managing and getting closer to where I want to be… I’m happy how the work is going right now.” 

Nevertheless, the tennis community wasn’t really surprised by Rybakina’s decision to work solely with Stefano Vukov. Of course, it wasn’t like Rybakina hated working with Sanguinetti. During the Abu Dhabi Open, she expressed feeling content with the Italian on her team. To move things faster and more efficiently, Sanguinetti even consulted with Vukov. 

To be fair, Rybakina has always shown an inclination towards her long-time coach. Prior to the fourth round of the 2025 US Open, she stated, “I’ve never had any problems with him. It’s just nice to see him back in my box. We talk well, there’s never been any communication problems.” But now that Vukov is back from his suspension, it was only natural for the Kazakh to go back to her former teammate. But why was Stefano Vukov suspended in the first place?

The controversy involving Vukov and Rybakina became a headline that no one wanted to miss out on. But what exactly caused him to be temporarily banned from coaching Elena Rybakina? 

Why did the WTA suspend Elena Rybakina’s coach?

Stefano Vukov, just like any other coach, wanted his student to ace the court. However, things started to get a bit tense when a few insiders accused the Croatian coach of mental abuse. The claims even stated that he told Rybakina that she’d “still be in Russia picking potatoes” if he weren’t there with her. The allegations against Vukov continued to rise, and more accounts backed up against his manipulative behavior, trying to push Rybakina past her limits. 

Finally, the WTA CEO, Portia Archer, revealed that things got out of hand at the 2024 US Open. To make things worse, Rybakina’s mother also called him out in an email. And thus began the Croatian tennis coach’s exile. The WTA later stated, “The WTA is fully committed to providing a safe and respectful environment for all athletes and other participants, as set out in our WTA Code of Conduct and Safeguarding Code. Any sanctions issued following a breach of these safeguarding rules are carefully considered and are subject to appeal before an independent tribunal.”

Surprisingly, Elena Rybakina was publicly disappointed with the WTA’s move and kept backing her claims that Vukov never mistreated her. After all, with Vukov by her side, her record boosted to a 71.7% win rate. She also thickened her wallet with more than $18M. And now, she can look forward to a few more wins in the future, as she leaves an unfinished story at the 2025 US Open. 

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