watchingtennis

[watchingtennis]

Last night I dreamt that Ons was retiring after the grass season and this was her last chance to win Wimbledon and I woke up so stressed

#I had to google her to make sure it wasn’t true #ons jabeur

[watchingtennis]

And that’s what we call character development

How is Alex de Minaur so bad on clay he grew up in SPAIN he lives in MONACO

#alex de minaur #rafael nadal #barcelona open

[watchingtennis]

jannik sinner for fastweb, behind the scenes (x)

#jannik sinner

[watchingtennis]

ZHENG QINWEN for lancome

#zheng qinwen

[watchingtennis]

love fake tennis, they seem to have so much fun

[watchingtennis]

some jannik shenanigans from today 🥕

#jannik sinner #miami open

[watchingtennis]

apparently alex de minaur is 1-12 in the round of 16 of masters 1000s 💀

#he’s trying 😔 #alex de minaur

[watchingtennis]

Our Australian Open Men's champion, youngest since Wawrinka in 2014, Jannik Sinner <3

#jannik sinner #australian open

[watchingtennis]

Good luck with your comeback, mate, it's good to see you back!

#andy murray #matteo berrettini #miami open

[watchingtennis]

Kasatkina isn't only a tennis player -- although she is really good at her day job -- and, even with some shoutouts to her sponsors, her account isn't just promotional content. Kasatkina, 26, is Russian and shares publicly that she is gay, in a time where few others from her country feel able to do so. While the Russian Supreme Court recently deemed the "international LGBT movement" an "extremist organization," Kasatkina and Zabiiako document their life together traveling the world on the WTA Tour, being unapologetically in love.

Their channel now has more than 41,000 subscribers, 134 videos, and several of their videos have gotten more than 100,000 views. Their US Open compilation episode received more than 200,000.

"We're getting a lot of feedback from Russia, from people who are struggling right now and who are in this terrible position and cannot do anything about it," Kasatkina, who has also spoken out against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, told ESPN this month. "And some of the people say that watching our vlog is the only inspirational thing they have right now. There was one who said, 'I just found your channel and I watched all the videos in two days and it helps me so much to live right now.' It's touching. It's really touching. And it's unexpected, really, because at the beginning we didn't think we would get this reaction."

[...]

But in 2019 she began to struggle with confidence, on and off the court. Her ranking plummeted to No. 70 that year, and she said she struggled internally with her sexuality, feeling unable to be fully herself. She didn't fare much better during the pandemic-affected 2020 season.

"A few years before coming out, I was in the moment where I wasn't sure, I wasn't confident in myself because I wasn't sure of anything I was doing," Kasatkina said. "Is it right or not? There were so many thoughts in my head, and I just couldn't fix it."

In the summer of 2021, Zabiiako sent Kasatkina a message after seeing some of her matches on television. She didn't know much about her -- "I just knew she was a tennis player and a cute girl, that's it actually" -- but the two quickly started exchanging texts. Three months later, they met in person when Kasatkina came to Moscow for the Kremlin Cup. They've been together ever since.

[...]

NEARLY TWO YEARS later [after the Kravchenko interview], Kasatkina doesn't recall everything she was feeling going into the interview, but she vividly remembers the anxiety she experienced.

"I was so stressed in that particular moment," Kasatkina said. "But I was also thinking, 'OK, nothing can get worse.' It's already on the edge. So I thought this is the moment to just make a splash about everything. In the same video I said many things which changed my life and, in the end, I don't regret it for a second."

Kasatkina was expecting a "lot of disagreement" to what she had said, and even "consequences" in Russia. And while it was all over Russian media and at least one politician called for her to be declared a "foreign agent," she was shocked by the amount of positive messages and comments she received. Some commended her bravery, others said they were inspired, and every dose of positivity emboldened her more.

"I just felt like a backpack full of stones fell off my shoulders," Kasatkina said. "I felt amazing actually."

[...]

As Zabiiako began to accompany Kasatkina around the world to the various events, she found herself fascinated by the globe-trotting lifestyle and was struck by how different it was from her own experiences as a professional athlete. Zabiiako, 29, had previously had her own YouTube channel, documenting her life as a figure skater, but thought they could do a joint channel.

"I didn't know much about tennis, I had seen a few matches, but really I didn't know anything," Zabiiako told ESPN. "I was shocked by how many tournaments there are. In figure skating we had a maximum of nine competitions per year, so this was an adjustment. But with the channel, we wanted to show people first of all about our life, but also what life on tour is like and that these women are not just athletes, not just players, but they're humans with their own feelings and problems."

[...]

"She does everything," Kasatkina said. "It's a Natasha production completely. Sometimes she's not sleeping during the night because she has a deadline for it [to post]. But it's all in her head, there is no set deadline, she's just that focused on it."

Both say the other one is more invested in the viewership numbers, but it's clear they both have been motivated by their growing audience -- and the messages they receive after each new video. Zabiiako tries to read every one.

"It's so important for LGBT people to see that there is life, there is freedom for them out there, because in some countries, they don't have that," Zabiiako said. "And they write in the DMs that they are so thankful for us. When I read [messages like] that, I have tears in my eyes because it means we're doing something huge for them. Even if it sometimes feels small to us, it can be huge for someone."

[...]

In a time when there are few openly gay players in professional tennis, and even fewer Russian players who have spoken out against the war, Kasatkina has become an icon for both. Sometimes the pressure can feel overwhelming, and she is keenly aware of the impact every interview, video or Instagram post can have.

Still, Kasatkina would do everything again, and she's grateful to have found her voice -- and to have people care what she has to say.

"It's a privileged position to stand with the microphone and whatever you say can affect at least one person and make a difference," Kasatkina said. "What I've learned in the past few years is that before you say something, you have to know that there are consequences and you have to know if you can handle it. And if you can, you can say what you want to say ...

"All we can do is to try to make this world better, and to be focused on yourself and try to be a better person every day. And to help people around you and these people then try to make the people around them happy. And then maybe with this change, we can improve this world. It's going to be tough, but I believe in this."

#🥹 #daria kasatkina

[watchingtennis]

“oh queerbait” yeah well what about evilbait??? for SO LONG supernatural was like “oh sam’s gonna be evil! watch out! watch out!!!!” well bitch i’m still waiting. make it happen!

[watchingtennis]

who suffered more tennis fans during indian wells delays or jesus christ

[watchingtennis]

YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH

#she is thriving #maria sakkari #indian wells

[watchingtennis]

the bee invasion of indian wells (14.03.2024)

#first a snake in brisbane and now bees #what have tennis players done to anger nature #indian wells #carlos alcaraz

[watchingtennis]

This was hilarious 😭

#hahaha tennis players deep undercover as ordinary people #I love how they’re all like ‘teehee’ #andrey being like ‘I don’t like rublev’ and maria being like ‘you should watch sakkari’ took me out #ons totally owned that job #also alex channeling the energy of every australian parking attendant I’ve ever encountered #indian wells

[watchingtennis]

oh, she knew what she was doing 💅🏼

via Broken Rackets’ ig story

#naomi osaka #indian wells

[watchingtennis]

Like every tennis player ever: *fighting for their lives at Indian Wells 2024*

Roger Federer: *at the Oscars* 😎

- ✨

AND HE LOOKS GREAT

#roger federer