Kazakhstani tennis player Karatantcheva switches back to Bulgaria

ASTANA. KAZINFORM - Professional tennis player Sesil Karatantcheva who represented Kazakhstan for almost five years has decided to play for her home country Bulgaria again, according to Championat.com.

The 25-year-old Bulgarian-born athlete hopes that her contract with Team Kazakhstan will be canceled upon mutual consent. Karatantcheva obtained Kazakhstani citizenship back in 2009 and since then represented Kazakhstan on an international level. She cited financial problems and generous support of the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation as the main reasons to play under the colors of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Karatantcheva also said that the fact that the federation believed in her as a professional also played an important role in her decision to switch to Kazakhstan. The Bulgarian tennis player advanced to quarterfinal at the Roland Garros (French Open) back in 2005 and reached her best singles ranking of world number 35 at the age of 16.