(Reuters) – The Abu Dhabi Open has apologised to Russian world number 11 Daria Kasatkina for an administrative mistake that listed her as a player from Spain at the tournament’s draw ceremony on Sunday and sparked speculation that she had switched her nationality.
Kasatkina has been playing on the tour as a neutral athlete after Russian and Belarusian players were banned from competing under their own flags following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, for which Belarus has been used as a staging ground.
The 27-year-old’s name next to the Spanish flag during the draw for the WTA 500 event had raised eyebrows, before her team denied that she had switched allegiance and the organisers apologised for the error.
“We sincerely apologise for the error made by one of our suppliers during the live draw, whereby an incorrect nationality was shown alongside the name of Daria Kasatkina,” organisers said in a statement on social media.
“This was entirely an administrative mistake and has now been corrected.”
Kasatkina, who has not returned to Russia in more than two years after coming out as gay and being one of the few Russian players who have publicly spoken out against the war, lives in Dubai but also trains in Spain.
“It is incorrect and we can categorically deny she is switching to Spain,” Kasatkina’s team told the BBC.
“This carries some strong implications for Daria if the Russian authorities feel she is trying to switch – which she is not.”
Reuters has contacted Kasatkina’s team for further comment.
Kasatkina is seeded third in the Abu Dhabi tournament, which begins on Monday.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Saad Sayeed)
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