‘I still can’t believe what’s happening’

Newly-crowned Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina on Tuesday dismissed Russian claims that she was its "product" as she received a hero's welcome in Kazakhstan, which she represented at the tournament.

Russian and Belarusian players were banned from Wimbledon this year after Russia sent troops to Ukraine but Moscow-born Rybakina was able to play as she had switched her allegiance to Kazakhstan in 2018.

At the weekend Russia appeared to claim her Grand Slam success when Russian tennis chief Shamil Tarpischev described Rybakina as "our product". "The transition from a junior to a professional career is very difficult," Rybakina, 23, told journalists in Kazakhstan when asked to comment on the "product" tag. "So I am of course not really in agreement with that phrasing."

"I always feel the support of our compatriots. "Yesterday, upon arrival in Kazakhstan, I saw how many people came to meet me. I still can't believe what's happening," Rybakina said during a meeting with Kazakh Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov on Tuesday.