2 days Ago By Yasmin Syed
Tennis ace Daria Kasatkina, originally from Russia, has opened up about her choice to switch allegiances and now compete under the Australian flag professionally. The world's 12th-ranked player broke the news on Friday evening, and at the ongoing Charleston Open , she's officially hitting the courts as an Aussie for the first time. The 27-year-old revealed the reasons behind her decision to take up permanent residency in Australia, citing that being openly gay left her with "no choice" but to depart from Russia .
Kasatkina came out publicly in 2022 , sharing details about her relationship with Russian-Estonian figure skater Natalia Zabiiako. Aryna Sabalenka embroiled in tense Miami restaurant argument Emma Raducanu enjoys big rankings boost after Miami Open success Kasatkina is kicking off her journey as an Australian tennis pro at the WTA 500 event in Charleston, where she's entered as the fifth seed. Come Monday, with the latest update to the official WTA rankings, the champion of eight titles now sports the Australian flag beside her name.
"It's my first official day as an Australian player. Honestly, it feels different, I'm not going to lie. It's emotional for me," she expressed.
"I have to get used to it. But I'm really happy to start this new chapter of my life representing Australia on the big stage." Kasatkina's exit from Russia was somewhat anticipated.
Besides being openly gay, she has vocally criticized Russia 's military actions in Ukraine . In 2023, she disclosed that she hadn't set foot in her homeland since before the conflict commenced over a year prior. But the 27 year old has now revealed that her sexuality was the key factor in her decision to change nationalities.
She added: "With everything going on in my previous country, I didn't have much choice. "For me, being openly-gay, if I want to be myself, I have to make this step, and I did it." DON'T MISS: Coco Gauff benefits from Jessica Pegula loss after ranking put at risk Jakub Mensik planned to quit Miami Open before huge Novak Djokovic upset Novak Djokovic 'death stare' forces Jakub Mensik apology in Miami Open final Kasatkina shared that Tennis Australia was the first to approach her about changing residency.
Eager for a fresh start in a place where she could be open about who she is, the ex-world No.8 jumped at the opportunity to move Down Under. "Australia is the place where I feel that I can be myself and I really am really happy to have this privilege to be part of this beautiful country," she declared in an interview with Bounces.
"I think it's obvious to say that Australia is a very welcoming country, very open-minded. "I mean, everyone is welcome there. "And as I said, Tennis Australia, they also made this step forward to me.
We, together, worked through this process and stuff. And of course, without their support and initiative, I don't think this would be possible. "So I'm really thankful to them.
And yeah, everything happened pretty fast, and I'm just really happy about it." At the upcoming Charleston Open, Kasatkina has been granted a bye into the second round, where she'll take on either wildcard entrant Lauren Davis or qualifier Jamie Loeb. As she steps onto the court for her first match, the fifth seed will have to accustom herself to being announced as an Australian player.
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