Kasatkina, the only openly gay woman in the top 100 of singles on the WTA Tour, revealed her sexuality in a video interview in 2022 before leaving Russia, which has strict laws on LGBTQ+ rights.
After also criticising the war in Ukraine in the interview, a Russian politician unsuccessfully called for her to be listed as a ‘foreign agent’ – someone acting against Russian interests.
Last year, she said she was expecting “consequences” following her actions.
“With everything going on in my previous country, I didn’t have much choice [to switch allegiance],” she told reporters on Monday.
“For me, being openly gay, if I want to be myself, I have to make this step, and I did it.
“I have to get used to it a little bit, because for a couple of years I didn’t hear anything. But it’s something nice to get used to.”
Natela Dzalamidze and Alexander Shevchenko are among other Russia-born tennis players to switch nationality in recent years, now representing Georgia and Kazakhstan respectively.
