By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Monday, February 3, 2025
Russian No. 1 Daria Kasatkina was incorrectly identified as representing Spain during the Abu Dhabi Open, which has issued an apology.
Photo credit: VCG/Getty
Abu Dhabi is apologizing for its mistaken identity.
Russian No. 1 Daria Kasatkina was incorrectly identified as representing Spain during the Abu Dhabi Open draw yesterday.
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Now, the tournament has issued an apology to Kasatkina for its error.
"We sincerely apologize for the error made by one of our suppliers during the live draw, whereby an incorrect nationality was shown alongside the name of Daria Kasatkina," the Abu Dhabi Open said in a statement on X. "This was entirely an administrative mistake and has now been corrected."
During the draw ceremony for the WTA 500 tournament a Spanish flag initially appeared next to Kasatkina's name. The error sent speculation swirling that Kasatkina could be considering changing nationality.
Russian Kasatkina, who lives in Dubai and has trained in Barcelona, Spain for years, shot down that speculation through her management team.
"It is incorrect and we can categorically deny she is switching to Spain," Kasatkina's management told BBC Sport.
Kasatkina's management told BBC Sport the mistake is "potentially quite harmful" to her.
That's because the reigning Eastbourne champion has publicly opposed Russia's unprovoked invasion of neighboring Ukraine and has been a public advocate for LGBTQ rights. Kasatkina came out as gay in July of 2022 and criticized Russia's treatment of gay citizens and the notion that one would choose to be gay as "ridiculous."
Potential repercussions in Russia are a reality for Kasatkina. BBC reports that in 2023 the Russian Supreme Court ruled the "international LGBT movement" is "an extremist organization."
World No. 11 Kasatkina's management firm reiterated she is not switching nationality and does not intend to represent Spain.
"This carries some strong implications for Daria if the Russian authorities feel she is trying to switch—which she is not," Kasatkina's management told BBC Sport.