No handshake after Ukraine, Belarus players meet at US Open

By BRIAN MAHONEY
AP Sports Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — A Ukrainian player declined to shake hands with Victoria Azarenka after the three-time U.S. Open runner-up from Belarus beat her at Flushing Meadows. Marta Kostyuk waited at the net with her racket held up, which Azarenka tapped with her racket following her 6-2, 6-3 victory. Belarus helped Russia launch its invasion of Ukraine in February, and Kostyuk said it had been on her mind since she saw the U.S. Open draw that she may have to play Azarenka in the second round. She said she didn’t believe a handshake was the right thing to do under the circumstances. She added she tried to warn Azarenka a day earlier.