Anastasia Potapova says publicly announcing her divorce from Alexander Shevchenko was something she simply needed to do for herself because people were constantly asking her the same question.
Last September, some fans noticed that the Russian tennis star unfollowed the Kazakh ATP player on X.
As it is usually the case in such situations, fans instantly started assuming that the two split.
And in November, Potapova issued an announcement through an Instagram Story, where she confirmed that she and Shevchenko decided to divorce.
“My team, my close ones, even me, we were all shocked by how mentally strong I could be. Every other person came to me and asked, ‘So what, you two broke up?’ On tour, outside the tour,” the 23-year-old told Sofya Tartakova for Bolshe.
“Of course, it’s not really polite, but it’s life and people are curious. It’s like a TV show for them. I think I needed to put an end to it, to end things officially, so I wouldn’t get those questions anymore. I think that was the last step I needed to finally set myself free.”
Potapova, Shevchenko dating history
The two tennis stars started dating in late 2022.
And by 2023 September, the 33rd-ranked WTA player and the ATP world No. 75 were engaged.
Four months later, they tied the knot in a ceremony that took place in Russia.
Meanwhile, both Potapova and Shevchenko resumed their respective pro careers as usual.
So far this season, the Russian has appeared in three tournaments.
This week, she made her first quarterfinal of the year at the WTA 500 tournament in Linz before Karolina Muchova handed her a 6-3 3-6 6-3 loss.
Previously, Potapova had a round-of-16 outing at the Brisbane International and lost in the Australian Open second round.
Tennis World USA