Makes no sense to ban us: Azarenka

Ousted Belarusian star hints at consequences for Wimbledon and Lawn Tennis Association for athlete ban.

Victoria Azarenka is a two-time semi-finalst at Wimbldeon Picture: Getty Images

Victoria Azarenka has criticised Wimbledon and the LTA for their ban on players from Russia and Belarus at tournaments in Britain this northern summer, saying it “does not make sense”.

The 32-year-old Belarusian, who won the Australian Open in 2012 and 2013 and is a two-times semi-finalist at Wimbledon, is a member of the WTA Players’ Council and has been a key part of discussions between tour officials over whether to strip this year’s Wimbledon of its ranking points.

She has been involved in 12 hours of talks over three days this week and urged the WTA and the ATP to act over the ban.

“I have been a part of the meetings directly with Wimbledon,” Azarenka said. “The commitment of players is there. I don’t think that I am at liberty to say what the WTA and ATP (will do). I think there should be a reaction to that, that is all I want to say.

“There are a lot of legalities that come with this type of decision, so I understand it is not simple. There are consequences to different actions: the one that Wimbledon takes, the one that the WTA might take.

“There are going to be consequences. If you are asking me if I agree with Wimbledon or I see their reasoning after being on a personal call with them, I don’t see their reasoning.

“It does not make sense and it does not connect to what they are saying.”

Azarenka is one of several players from Russia and Belarus who were invited to take part in a conference call with officials from the All England Club after the decision was made last week. When asked how the talks had progressed, her reply was telling.

“I think you should ask (chief executive) Sally Bolton and (tournament director) Jamie Baker about that because I would really like to hear their comments on that,” she said.

Azarenka also reiterated her previous stance against the invasion of Ukraine. “I will never, ever support war,” she said. “I will never support violence. I will never find any justifications for that.”

Ranking points are the only form of leverage the ATP and WTA can use against Wimbledon because of its grand-slam status. The LTA is more vulnerable because the warm-up tournaments on grass are under the jurisdiction of the two tours and could face additional fines and sanctions. The removal of points is a severe response that would affect more than 100 players. The fields at British events would be decimated and space is limited at concurrent tournaments in Germany and the Netherlands. Dayana Yastremska, the world No 92 from Ukraine, believes that it would be an unreasonable course of action for the tours to take.

“If they take points away, many players are going to start being very angry,” she said. “I will just say I am supporting Wimbledon. I think the decision they made is very respectful, they did the right thing. Other players (from Ukraine) are supporting it as well.

“How would I be able to play against those players (from Russia and Belarus) at the tournament when all the world is talking about the war that is being fought against Ukraine? How would I feel playing against them?”

Meanwhile, former world number one Simona Halep feels like she has “the fire back” as she enjoyed a winning debut with her new coach Patrick Mouratoglou, easing to a 6-2, 6-3 success over China’s Zhang Shuai in Madrid.

The two-time grand slam champion was on the verge of retirement after an injury-plagued 2021 season and had doubts she would be able to recapture the form that saw her spend 64 weeks at the summit of the rankings.

Her decision to team up with Mouratoglou, the longtime coach of Serena Williams, after initially intending to spend some time alone on tour has helped her find the spark she was missing

The 30-year-old, currently ranked 21 in the world, scooped the first set against Zhang in 29 minutes and recovered from an early break in the second en route to a 68-minute win.

Halep showcased a more aggressive game on the clay courts of the Caja Magica and says things have been going great with her French coach so far.

“I used to be a little bit more negative in the past, I improved, but now it’s like, wow, even more,” said Halep of Mouratoglou. “I can open up to him super easy, I can say everything I feel which is helping me because he knows how to take it and how to respond to my problems or my doubts.

The Times, AFP