Zeynep Sönmez's Curious Way of Showing Support for Palestine at Wimbledon

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Zeynep Sönmez has found a discreet yet highly symbolic way to show her support for Palestine during her participation in Wimbledon. After being prohibited by the organizers from displaying a brooch with the Palestinian flag, the Turkish tennis player chose to attach a watermelon-shaped dampener to her racket, a symbol widely associated with the Palestinian cause.

Sönmez herself explained how the idea came about during an interview, where she revealed that she had already discussed this issue with the tournament organizers: "I used to wear a brooch in support of Palestine, but now tournaments don’t allow it. We had a discussion with the organizers because they said, 'They allow the flag of Ukraine but not of Palestine'. When they firmly stated that it was not allowed, I started putting a dampener on my racket with the symbol of a watermelon instead of the brooch. They can't say anything about that," she stated.

Sonmez's Gesture to Circumvent Wimbledon's Restrictions

Watermelon has become, in recent years, an emblem used by many supporters of the Palestinian cause. Its colors—red, green, white, and black—match those of the Palestinian flag, making it historically a symbolic way to represent Palestine in contexts where displaying its flag was restricted or prohibited.

Zeynep Sönmez: "I used to wear a brooch in support of Palestine but tournaments no longer allow it. 'The flag of Ukraine is allowed but not that of Palestine,' we argued with the officials. When they unequivocally stated they didn't allow it, I put a... pic.twitter.com/Lcuvg21Rgx

— Sporx (@sporx) July 2, 2026

Sonmez's gesture has attracted attention during Wimbledon as it represents an unconventional way to express a political stance without explicitly violating the tournament's regulations. The Turkish tennis player believes that the watermelon-shaped dampener allows her to continue showing her support without breaching the rules set by the organization, which prohibit displaying certain symbols or political messages during the competition.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, La curiosa forma de Zeynep Sönmez de mostrar su apoyo a Palestina en Wimbledon