Caroline Garcia: why did she fall out with Kristina Mladenovic?

Caroline Garcia is a 28-year-old tennis player with a string of successes. This Tuesday, September 6, the young woman qualified for the semi-finals of the US Open by beating the American Coco Gauff in two sets. A feat of which she is very proud but which is also an opportunity to discuss her estrangement with Kristina Mladenovic, which lasted for two years. It all started in 2016 when the two young women have decided to team up in doubles on the WTA circuit. The chemistry was immediate, they got along well and even won their first Grand Slam title at Roland-Garros. “Winning Roland with my girl, I have no words to describe it“, had then confided Kristina Mladenovic, very moved by this victory. Things then got complicated during the Olympic Games in Rio. against all odds, Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia were eliminated in the first round by Misaki Doi and Eri Kozumi. Quickly, Kristina Mladenovic accused the French Tennis Federation of not having warned them that they had no “the right to play with outfits of different colors“, reports France Info which then adds that it has therefore “lent one of his to his partner“.

Kristina Mladenovic’s statements did not go unnoticed by the French Tennis Federation, which immediately reacted and took a radical decision. The two young women were “suspended as a precaution for their attitude“recalls France Info. However, Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia played in the Fed Cup and they lost to the Czechs Karolina Pliskova and Barbora Strycova. A defeat that will mark the beginning of a falling out that will last two years. For her part, Caroline Garcia announces her decision to withdraw from Les Bleues. “It’s very sad that it happened like that, of his doing. What actually happened was she decided she wanted to stop playing doubles and she just texted me“, regretted his former partner. In the spring of 2017, Caroline Garcia announced her withdrawal from the Fed Cup play-off against Spain. The reason ? Sciatic nerve pain. An explanation questioned by Kristina Mladenovic and Alizé Cornet and Pauline Parmentier who simply wrote “LOL“on social networks. Enough to fuel the argument.

Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia: how did they reconcile?

It was in January 2019 that Julien Benneteau, who had just become the captain, recalled Caroline Garcia during the first round of the Fed Cup in Belgium. “It was inconceivable not to select her because I had to select the best possible team“, he explained at the time. Caroline Garcia made a victorious return, which also allowed her to reconcile with her former partner, Kristina Mladenovic. They chained the victories and won the competition. “It’s a lot of emotions to live this with Caroline after what happened three years ago. It’s indescribable what we’re going through“, said Kristina Mladenovic. For her part, Caroline Garcia had mentioned a “beautiful story“despite many turbulences during two years.