Jabeur joins Sabalenka, Rybakina in criticizing Cancun organization, WTA defends itself

Ons Jabeur is the latest player voicing her frustration with conditions at the WTA Finals in Cancun. The Tunisian, who is scheduled to kick off her campaign at the prestigious tournament on Monday, praised the dedicated workers in Mexico, but slammed the WTA, just like Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina did earlier.

Players consider it scandalous that the stadium was finished only a day before the start of the event. The world No.7 Jabeur acknowledged the effort of the construction team, and didn’t blame them, but pointed out that the stadium should have been ready earlier, so that players could properly prepare for competition:

This is such a big event. We should have been able to be ready and hit on the court. Yeah, hopefully, this will never, ever, ever happen again. Like ever.

World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka said that she feels disrespected by the WTA and that such a low level of organization is not acceptable for the WTA Finals where so much is at stake. Elena Rybakina, who is making her debut at the tournament, said that all players are struggling: “About the court, I don’t really want to talk, but of course, it’s not good. … Everything was late and [there was] no time to fix anything.”

The location for this year’s WTA Finals was only disclosed last month, as part of a one-year arrangement with Cancun. The WTA is defending the temporary hard court:

We’re pleased to host the WTA Finals in Cancun for the first time and worked hard to construct a stadium where the world’s top eight women’s tennis players and doubles teams compete head-to-head. The team has worked diligently on an expedited timeline amid weather challenges to ensure the stadium and court meet our strict performance standards.