Elena Rybakina politely removed a presenter's hand from her back during a photo session after winning the Eisenhower Cup mixed doubles event with Taylor Fritz. The incident, captured on video, drew attention on social media. Rybakina expressed happiness about the victory ahead of her singles campaign at the tournament.
Elena Rybakina and Taylor Fritz secured back-to-back wins at the Eisenhower Cup exhibition by defeating Americans Amanda Anisimova and Learner Tien in the final on Tuesday night. The pair received a $200,000 check and individual trophies during the post-match ceremony at Indian Wells, ahead of the ATP and WTA Masters 1000 tournament.
While posing for photos with tournament sponsors, David Renker, Senior Vice President of Eisenhower Health, placed his arm behind Rybakina. She nudged his hand away and glanced in his direction, prompting Renker and another presenter to step back. Footage of the moment spread rapidly online, sparking discussions on Reddit and a now-removed video on X.
Despite the awkward exchange, Rybakina appeared cheerful afterward. She shared an Instagram post of herself and Fritz holding their trophies and stated, “I’m super happy. Hopefully I can do the same thing in singles.” Her singles match at the event, often called tennis's fifth grand slam, begins on Saturday.
The tournament features top players including Aryna Sabalenka, Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner. Rybakina previously defeated Sabalenka in the Australian Open final to claim her second Grand Slam title. Sabalenka, the women's world No. 1, seeks her first Indian Wells title after losses in the 2023 final to Rybakina and last year's to Mirra Andreeva. Alcaraz, who recently became the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam at the Australian Open, enters on a 12-match winning streak following his Qatar Open victory.
