Svitolina: Russian players must speak on war

Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina wants Russian and Belarusian players to say whether they oppose the war in her nation.

“For us, for Ukrainians, it’s very important that they speak out, that they choose which side they take. We want to know, we want to feel safe about that. Because if they don’t say their opinion on this, we don’t know if they support their government, if they support the action of the army,” Svitolina told The Associated Press on Wednesday. “Because in Russia and Belarus sport is a big propaganda.”

In an interview with the AP, Svitolina also addressed mental health and feeling overwhelmed by the anguish of war.

Mental strain led to the former third-ranked Ukrainian’s decision to take a break from tennis. She said the stress also accentuated ongoing back problems.

“For me it’s been a really rough couple of months mentally to hold everything on my shoulders. That’s why it was a better decision to take my time to really settle down,” she said. “To be on top of the game you have to be 100% mentally and physically fit. For me it was not the case.”

The Wimbledon tournament, which starts on June 27, has barred players from Russia and Belarus because of the war. The French Open, starting on May 22, is allowing them to compete as neutral players. For Svitolina, it’s more about breaking silence.

Elsewhere: Once is enough when it comes to beating Rafael Nadal on a clay court. Throughout his career, Nadal has never lost consecutive matches on his favorite surface and the Spaniard extended that perfect record on Wednesday by beating John Isner 6-3, 6-1 to reach the third round of the Italian Open. Nadal was coming off a loss to 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz in the Madrid Open quarterfinals last week. In other action, secondseeded Alexander Zverev, who was routed by Alcaraz in the Madrid final on Sunday, beat Sebastian Baez 7-6 (6), 6-3 to end the Argentine qualifier’s eight-match winning streak. Stefanos Tsitsipas saved two match points before getting past Grigor Dimitrov 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (4); and Marcos Giron, an American qualifier, picked up his fourth win and five days by beating 2020 finalist Diego Schwartzman 6-1, 7-6 (4).

ETC.

Soccer: Inter Milan remained on course for a league and cup double by beating Juventus 4-2 after extra time in the Italian Cup final. Ivan Perisic scored twice in extra time after Hakan Calhanoglu had converted a controversial late penalty. Juventus had turned the match around early in the second half with two goals in as many minutes from Alex Sandro and Dusan Vlahovic after going behind on an early Nicolo Barella strike.

NFL: Josh Lambo, the former Jaguars kicker who alleged he was kicked and verbally abused by then coach Urban Meyer, filed a lawsuit against the team, seeking more than $3.5 million in lost salary and additional damages for emotional distress.