"Be quiet about hand shakes and sportsmanship clownshow" - Alexandr Dolgopolov defends Marta Kostyuk over handshake criticism, slams Russian players

Marta Kostyuk won her maiden WTA title at the ATX Open in Austin, Texas on Sunday. But along with congratulatory messages, Kostyuk also received criticism from a few sections of the tennis world for not shaking hands with her Russian opponent in the final, Varvara Gracheva. The duo did not greet each other at the net at the end of the match.

Kostyuk had earlier declared that she would not greet any Russian or Belarusian opponents for the traditional post-match handshake. This, she believes, is a justified gesture in light of their silence regarding Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Former Ukrainian tennis star Alexandr Dolgopolov has now come to Kostyuk's defense, sharing his views on why she has no obligation to greet any Russian player on the tour. The former ATP World No. 13 suggested that the topic of sportsmanship pales in comparison to bigger issues such as the loss of Ukrainian lives.

Dolgopolov went on to criticize Russian tennis players for allegedly supporting their country's government and their war in Ukraine, while also slamming tennis authorities for not taking stricter action. The 34-year-old strongly urged Kostyuk's critics to "be quiet."

"Putin has giant support in russia, we have numerous facts that even many tennis players themselves support their government and nothing has been done, tennis failed to keep the sport away from genocide, so better be quite about your hand shakes and sportsmanship clownshow," he wrote on Twitter.

"Oh and apart from being silent accomplices and tax payers and voters and etc., until you don’t have proof that their relatives or friends are not killing, my relatives, friends or Ukrainians daily here and fighting myself, just be quite please, because it sounds pathetic," Dolgopolov added.

A few months ago, Kostyuk had expressed her disappointment in the Russian and Belarusian players for not reaching out to her and her fellow Ukrainians and for not publicly condemning the war.

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Paul McNamee criticizes Marta Kostyuk and Varvara Gracheva over 'no handshake' in ATX Open final

Marta Kostyuk rose to World No. 40 after her ATX Open win.

Former doubles World No. 1 Paul McNamee lamented the lack of a "simple act of sportsmanship" from Marta Kostyuk and Varvara Gracheva in the ATX Open final on Sunday. The Australian opined that, despite their differences, players must greet each other after matches as a show of respect for each other's efforts.

"Have we stooped so low that the simple act of sportsmanship between two athletes, who are competing as individuals, is not respected? Win or lose, you look your opponent in the eye, and you shake their hand. Period," McNamee wrote on Twitter, reacting to the incident.

Meanwhile, Marta Kostyuk dedicated her title to her home nation Ukraine and those who are "fighting and dying" back home as the war is still ongoing.

"Being in the position that I am in right now, it's extremely special to win this title and I want to dedicate this title to Ukraine and all the people who are fighting and dying right now," Marta Kostyuk stated in her on-court speech.

Kostyuk has achieved a career-high ranking of No. 40 courtesy of her title in Austin. She is up 29 places in the WTA rankings since the start of the 2023 season.