The 25-year-old Belarusian had been pressed with questions at the start of Roland Garros about her position on the invasion of Ukraine and her ties to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, an ally of Russia. She then chose, with the agreement of the tournament, not to give a press conference for two rounds, before deciding to appear again after her victory against Ukraine's Elina Svitolina on Tuesday. The Belarusian wanted to set the record straight: "I don't support war, I don't want my country to be involved in any conflict. I have said this many times. You know my position, you know my point of view, you have my answers, I have answered them many times. I do not support war. And I don't want sport to be involved in politics, because I'm just a tennis player. I am only 25 years old. If I wanted to be a politician, I wouldn't be here. I don't want to get caught up in politics. I just want to be a tennis player.
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- Roland Garros Men's Singles
- Roland Garros Women's Singles
And the world No. 2 has reversed her highly controversial choice to boycott press conferences in her two previous matches. "I felt I was disrespected. I had the feeling that the journalist tried to lend me words that were not mine. I didn't feel comfortable. That's just how I feel, that's all. I respect press conferences, I am always transparent in my answers. I blamed myself for not coming here. It kept me awake. I had a lot of thoughts on my mind. I have thought about it again and again, because I respect all of you. Thank you for being here, for showing an interest in my journey. I must say that I felt bad not coming and not participating in the press conference.
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