A Moscow-born women's doubles tennis player has avoided a Wimbledon ban on all competitors from Russia by changing her nationality to Georgian. Natela Dzalamidze, a 29-year-old who is currently 44th in the doubles rankings, is listed as being from Georgia on the WTA Tour website — and in Wimbledon's entry list for the tournament, which begins June 27. Dzalamidze will play with partner Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia.
Wimbledon organisers, the All England Club announced in April that players from Russia and Belarus would be barred from competing this year following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
But an All England Club spokesman told The Times they were powerless to interfere in Dzalamidze's change of nationality, as this was a matter for the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and the International Tennis Federation (ITF), and that she had satisfied the entry requirements.
"Player nationality, defined as the flag they play under at professional events, is an agreed process that is governed by tours and the ITF," the spokesman said.
Wimbledon are to allow players to practice on Centre Court and Court No 1 for the first time this week to avoid injuries in the early rounds. Board member Tim Henman said the aim was to “play in” the courts which have proved slippery in the past.
The ban of Russian and Belarus players from the iconic tournament was a big announcement. It made heads turn and led to a widespread reaction in the tennis world, with the WTA and the ATP going ahead and stripping the marquee tournament of ranking points. So far, no other Grand Slam tournaments have taken such a big step with the US Open recently announcing that Russia and Belarus players will be able to participate in the fourth and final Grand Slam of the year under a neutral flag.
Following the criticism of the ban, two All England Club officials had even defended the decision during a news conference, saying that the "intensely tough and agonising decision" to restrict players from Russia and Belarus from Wimbledon this year was carried out only due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
While all eyes are on the marquee event to commence next week, Wimbledon's ban will see some big-ticket players missing out, such as world number 1 Daniil Medvedev as well as two-time major winner 32-year-old Victoria Azarenka.
