The Belarusian Viktoria Azarenkaformer number 1 in the world and current number 16, announced this Sunday that he is “living a moment of extreme stress” in his personal life and that he needs to “take a break” from tennis, with the desire to “be able to return” to compete at the most high level.
This was announced by Azarenka in official statements provided by the tournament Miami after she withdrew from the third round match against Czech Linda Fruhvirtova (number 279) when he was losing 6-3 and 3-0.
“I shouldn’t have jumped on the court today. The last few weeks have been extremely stressful in my personal life. The last match was exhausting for me, but I wanted to play in front of this huge crowd because it helped me a lot in my first match. I wanted to jump into track and try, but it was a mistake,” Azarenka said. “I hope to take a break and be able to come back,” he said.
Broke down in tears at Indian Wells
The Belarusian had had a lackluster spell in Indian Wells two weeks ago, breaking down in tears during a match over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“I feel sorry for the fans for what happened, because they were fantastic cheering me on. They were the only reason I went out there to compete. I always look for challenges and pressure, but today was too much. I have to learn from this,” he said.
“I would like to congratulate my rival and wish him the best of luck in this tournament and in the beginning of his professional career,” he concluded.
