This deemed-to-be-wedded tennis prodigy found her plans disrupted due to her triumph in securing the US Open women's doubles championship title.
The game plan shifted drastically when the Ukrainian competitor and her pairing partner, Jelena Ostapenko, continued to ace wins in the women's doubles tourney.
They were so successful that they clinched the grand slam trophy on a Friday, outplaying opponents Kristina Mladenovic and Zhang Shuai in straight sets in the final, held in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Upon bagging her first grand slam title, Kichenok divulged that Kumarsky – Ostapenko's mentor – had planned the wedding just two days prior to the final, with the intention of uniting the pair. However, their continued victories on the court put a damper on these nuptials.
"When we touched down in New York, my boyfriend Stas, he scouted out potential venues because we've been engaged for over a year," the 32-year-old explained on the court after securing the women's doubles trophy. "We were weighing up all the options, figuring out the logistics. And, yeah, he found a spot here and scheduled an appointment for Wednesday."
"He informed me of it. I was like, 'Alright, yeah, let's do it.' Just the formalities, the paperwork... yeah, we had a date set, but I was slated to play the semifinals on Wednesday. I sighed and said, 'Maybe another time.'"
Kichenok shared that a second wedding was in the works, hinting at a potential ceremony in "Las Vegas or somewhere in Europe."
Kichenok and Ostapenko were virtually unbeatable on their route to capturing the US Open women's doubles championship, not losing a single set along the way.
Their triumph marked the third title of the year for them. Post victory, Kichenok dedicated the victory to "the folks in Ukraine," expressing her hope that their struggle for freedom would be buoyed by her achievement.
"They're putting in an impressive effort for our freedom right now, and I just want to offer them a boost of motivation. My heart is with them."
Despite the wedding plans, their tennis success prevented the nuptials from happening as planned. The victorious duo, Kichenok and Ostapenko, continued their dominant run in tennis, not dropping a single set in the US Open women's doubles tournament.
