Cincinnati Open star accuses WTA of being 'biased' after losing temper with unruly fan

Anna Kalinskaya has accused the WTA of being 'biased' against her due to the scheduling of her upcoming match against Iga Swiatek. The two players will do battle in the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Open after Kalinskaya's victory over Ekaterina Alexandrova in round three. She came from behind to secure a 3-6 7-6 6-1 win over her fellow Russian and book her place in the last eight.

Afterwards, the 26-year-old took to social media to express her frustration with the WTA. She opened up about her lack of sleep over the last few days, given her late exit from the venue following her victory over Alexandrova. Kalinskaya finished her extraordinary rant by accusing organisers of putting her at a disadvantage ahead of her meeting with Swiatek.

On her Instagram story, Kalinskaya wrote: "How does the WTA and the tournament expect their players to play well with these unfair schedules?

"After my match against Alexandrova, I went home at 2:40am and didn't go to bed until 4:00am. I slept a little and came back to train today. Then they scheduled my match tomorrow [against Swiatek] at 11:00am.

"How does the WTA and the tournament expect me to recover and continue adjusting my sleep patterns, when that's one of the most important aspects of recovery? It seems a bit biased."

It comes after Kalinskaya took issue with a rowdy fan during her comeback victory over Alexandrova. After losing the first set, she became exasperated with the noise from the crowd and approached the umpire to complain.

She demanded that security were alerted to deal with an unruly fan, but the umpire replied: "I'm keeping an eye on them. I don't think they're doing something wrong."

Kalinskaya argued that too much noise was being made on crucial points but the official was unmoved, responding: "Yeah, they stop, but they're also cheering for both of you. They're clapping. I don't know what they're doing."

It left the Russian player frustrated as she fired back: "Yeah, but I think maybe they're drunk or something." The umpire then conceded: "They probably are."

The incident did not mark the first time Kalinskaya had been involved in a dispute with an umpire on American soil. During last year's US Open, she was wrongly denied a point against Beatriz Haddad Maia, who went on to win the match.

Haddad Maia was credited with reaching a ball that had bounced twice, with organisers later admitting they got the decision wrong.

To be the first to receive the latest tennis news, join our WhatsApp community or newsletter.