The lingering anxiety of this Russian tennis player who doesn’t recognize Charlene of Monaco at the Masters 1000 awards ceremony in Monte-Carlo.

The sun was certainly shining a little during the final of the Rolex-Monte Carlo Masters 2023 in Monaco on Sunday, April 16, where Denmark’s Holger Rohn clashed with Russia’s Andrei Rublev on clay. The latter, the world No. 6, finally won it in three sets, 5-7 6-2 7-5, thus winning the biggest title of his career at 25.

It was then that an awkward situation arose when the princely couple went down to the tennis court to present their trophy to the young winner. Overwhelmed by her feat, she actually mistook Princess Charlene for the president of the Monegasque tennis federation, Melanie-Antoinette de Massey, who was also Prince Albert’s little cousin.

Signaling to Melanie and the prince, the champion thus announced. “I would like to say a big thank you to Monsignor (sic) and the Princess for always making this tournament an incredible moment.” Then he turned to Charlene and added, “Thank you Melanie for everything,” before realizing his mistake when the princess gave him a nod to Monegasque’s patron saint of tennis.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” replied Rublev, putting his head in his hands, terribly uncomfortable, and begging to be sunbathed. “Very sunny guys, sorry. I’m a bit stupid, you know,” he said again. If Albert and his little cousin were amused by this mistake, Princess Charlene lowered her head, ashamed of the situation.

Finally, continuing his speech, the tennis player then referred to his country of origin, admitting that he was pleasantly surprised to receive so much support from the public as a Russian athlete. “One last thing, I just want to say a big thank you to all of you, because being from the country I’m from, having international support around the world means a lot.” Playing under a neutral flag, along with all other Russians and Belarusians in tennis, Rublev has already spoken out against the war in Ukraine, calling for peace on several occasions.

In the video: Charlene, the melancholy princess of Monaco