Tennis insider Jon Wertheim claims Stefano Vukov has been described as “an aggressive coach” by some players and the WTA even started placing employees in the stands undercover so they could monitor and see if there was any truth in the allegations made about the coach’s behavior toward Elena Rybakina.
Last week, the Croatian coach told Russian tennis insider Sofya Tartakova that he wasn’t banned by the WTA and that he would return to the Kazakh’s team for the Australian Open.
That’s when the WTA finally broke their months-long silence and confirmed that Vukov was indeed suspended since August and under investigation over an alleged misconduct.
Meanwhile, Rybakina herself announced that the 37-year-old was rejoining her staff and also hit out at the media but also some tennis community members by insisting that she was “never mistreated” during their five-year partnership.
Wertheim: I heard from other players that Vukov is an aggressive coach, someone launched a complaint
“It has been an open secret that this has been an aggressive coach I’ve heard from other players, I mean this is dating back, multiple years,” the insider said on the Served with Andy Roddick.
“I’ve heard that at one point the WTA sometimes have had planted employees in the stands to sort of get a glimpse of this relationship first hand during matches.”
Elena Rybakina and Stefano Vukov© YouTube screenshot
One of Vukov’s biggest critics has been 1976 US Open finalist Pam Shriver, who basically drew attention to the 37-year-old when she called out his behavior during Rybakina’s 2023 Australian Open semifinal against Victoria Azarenka.
And after more people started looking at the Croatian’s behavior, it ultimately led to someone filing a complaint to the WTA and an investigation being launched.
“It was concerning to a number of people in the sport, some being Pam Shriver, is someone who has been open and vocal about this,” Wertheim added.
“At some point last year, a complaint was launched, I heard it was before the US Open, unclear who launched this complaint against the coach.”
It has been reported that the WTA’s investigation into Vukov could end as early as this week.
Tennis World USA