The main draw of the US Open has not even begun and yet the qualifying rounds have seen some drama already. This time Dayana Yastremka snubbed Canadian player Eugenie Bouchard of a handshake after defeating her. Dayana’s reason to forego the handshake is due to Bouchard’s unsavory comment at the Madrid Open earlier this year.
Their clash was one of the more highly anticipated games of the qualifying rounds. And it lived up to fans’ expectations. Yastremska dashed Bouchard’s hopes of making it to the main draw of the Slam.
The Ukrainian looked dominant during their second-round clash and defeated Bouchard 6-1, 4-6, 6-4. After her victory, Dayana shook hands with the referee but not with Bouchard.
Dayana Yastremska refuses to shake hands with Eugenie Bouchard after their controversy in Madrid
by u/walkorfly in tennis
Fans immediately took notice of the snub between the two tennis stars. A lot of fans came in Dayana’s support. One fan even pointed out the ‘death stare’ that Dayana sent Eugenie’s way. Here are some of the fan reactions to the incident.
Well done Dayana on a terrific win.Handshake is not mandatory and I don’t blame her after what happened after the last match.#usopen 🇨🇦🎾🇺🇦👏👏 https://t.co/VAwsIy59Mc
— Stephen Benson (@srbtennis13) August 24, 2023
Lmao, she also gave her a death stare 🤭https://t.co/3Qyb1Uf2d9
— NoFirstName Hardcourtdalovic (@samstennnis) August 24, 2023
A user pointed out how Dayana tried to get the WTA to ban Mirra Andreeva for her apparent social media activities. Yastremska, like Elina Svitolina, has also refused to shake hands with Russian players.
Dayana Yastremska
– Trying actively to get a innocent 16 year old banned from the tour.
– doesn’t shake hands with people that’s mothers went into labor in Russia.
– Won’t shake hands with you if you post something like “Something about beating dopers in Madrid” (Dayana popped… pic.twitter.com/4gyGbOYhtf— pat (o) (@Patkk151515) August 25, 2023
Tennis fans had anticipated a heated contest after Eugenie had taken a dig at Yastremska online. The Canadian player had defeated Dayana and then took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to call the latter a “Doper.”
Why did Eugenie Bouchard call Dayana Yastremska a ‘doper’?
Eugenie took an unexpected dig at Yastremska following her victory over the latter at the Madrid Open this year. Bouchard called the Ukrainian a ‘doper’ in her tweet. Yastremska had been banned due to alleged doping but the ban was lifted soon after.
Both players had locked horns during the first round in Madrid. Bouchard came back hard after losing the first set, defeating Dayana 6-7(6) 6-2 6-2.
However, she took an extraordinary aim at Yastremska the next day. Bouchard tweeted a photo of herself with the caption, “There’s something about playing dopers in Madrid…” Eugenie later deleted the tweet after facing backlash from fans.
I am glad Genie deleted her tweet. It is not a fair thing to attack people who have been totally cleared by the Tribunal. pic.twitter.com/cFMgGgjNkR
— Patrick Mouratoglou (@pmouratoglou) April 28, 2023
Yastremska was banned due to testing positive for Mesterolone, an anabolic steroid. However, she was cleared of all charges by an independent tribunal just six months later in 2021.
Bouchard’s tweet was unsavory. Hence Yastremska refusing to shake her hand at the US Open is understandable. The Ukrainian made her Grand Slam debut in 2018 and has not missed the main draw at the event once. Dayana Yastremska is just one victory away from repeating it.