Victoria Azarenka is undoubtedly one of the most loved players on the tour. The former World No. 1 is highly regarded for her powerful game, leaving her opponents to face utmost difficulty in beating her. However, despite being one of the strongest players, Azarenka is experiencing a stressful phase in her personal life. What’s more? With the increasing degree of stress, it has now started affecting her game.
Recently, during her third-round match, the 3-time Miami champion abruptly left the match in between. Even after being repeatedly stopped by the chair umpire, the 32-year-old didn’t give an ear to the umpire, picked up her bag, and left the court. Even though her act opened room for a long list of speculations, Azarenka soon released a statement about her mid-match retirement.
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Why did Victoria Azarenka leave mid-match?
Azarenka has been undergoing a low phase in her career lately. However, it was after her third-round match that she finally opened up about the reason for her sudden downfall. In the statement released by Azarenka post her mid-match retirement, she finally revealed that her past weeks have been extremely stressful in her personal life.
Giving the statement shortly after her mid-match retirement, Azarenka started her statement by asserting that she shouldn’t have played the match. She also spoke about her personal problems. “I shouldn’t have gone on the court today. The last few weeks have been extremely stressful in my personal life.”
In the second round, Azarenka took on Ekaterina Alexandrova. Even though she won the match, the victory didn’t come that easily. Struggling with her form, Azarenka somehow managed to win the first set 6-4. However, failing to match Ekaterina’s game, she lost the second-set 2-6. However, after a long struggle, Azarenka finally won the final set in a tiebreaker.
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Recalling her last match, Azarenka asserted that the match took a lot out of her. Even though she further confessed that she played just for the audience, she ended by saying that it was a mistake. She said, “Last match took so much out of me, but I wanted to play in front of a great audience as they helped me pull through my first match. I wanted to go out there and try but it was a mistake.”
‘I shouldn’t have gone on court today.’
Full statement from Victoria Azarenka after her match retirement yesterday: pic.twitter.com/FmgaYNdRwk
— The Tennis Podcast (@TennisPodcast) March 28, 2022
Apologizing to the fans
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Not opening any further on her condition and her struggle, Azarenka tried to show a positive side and give herself hope of a strong comeback. “I hope to take a break and be able to come back,” she said.
“I’m sorry to the fans for what happened as you were great to cheer for me. It was the only reason I decided to step on the court. I always look forward to the challenge and pressure of competition but today it was too much. I have to and will learn from this.”
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The former World No. 1 ended by apologizing to her fans for her abrupt mid-match retirement. However, she confessed that it was only because of the fans that she stepped on the court to play the match.