WATCH: Hilarious scenes during coin toss before Guadalajara clash between Victoria Azarenka and Madison keys as Belarusian takes shot aimed at chair umpire Marija Cicak
Victoria Azarenka is on course for a strong finish to the 2022 season, reaching the quarterfinals of the WTA 1000 event in Guadalajara. In the third round, the Belarusian took on Madison Keys and defeated her in three sets to put an end to the American's dreams of making the WTA Finals at the end of the year.
The match was refereed by Marija Cicak, who also served as the umpire for the clash between Sloane Stephens and Belinda Bencic in the second round. During the contest, Cicak made a grave error at one point, awarding a point to Bencic for a wrong line call when replaying the point would have been a better course of action.
The chair umpire received widespread criticism for the decision on social media, with many claiming that she must not have been paying close attention to proceedings if she could make that bad a call.
As it turns out, Azarenka herself was watching the match on television when the incident happened, which she did not shy away from mentioning to Cicak. At the net during the coin toss, the two-time Grand Slam champion made a point of telling her that she "saw her mistake last night," taking both Cicak and Keys by surprise.
Azarenka: Saw your mistake yesterday. It's okay. we all makes mistakes 😂
Madison couldn't stop laughing. #cicak https://t.co/V9gPOI2qmx
The American immediately broke into a fit of laughter, while Cicak also took the comment in her stride. Admitting that she indeed made a mistake and that everyone made mistakes at some point, Cicak jokingly thanked the former World No. 1 for the nice reminder.
"Thank you, that's a nice way to start. I take that. We all make mistakes," Cicak replied in jest.
Azarenka to Marija Cicak during the coin toss ahead of her match against Keys: "I saw your mistake yesterday" — followed by a priceless reaction from Keys.
"Thank you, that's a nice way to start. I take that. We all make mistakes" replies Cicak. Keys just can't stop laughing 😂 https://t.co/VDXV2o2hO7
Victoria Azarenka takes on Coco Gauff in the quarterfinals in Guadalajara
Following her victory over Madison Keys, Victoria Azarenka will lock horns with Coco Gauff in the quarterfinals of the WTA 1000 event in Guadalajara, their first meeting on the WTA Tour. Gauff defeated Italy's Martina Trevisan in straight sets to set up a meeting with the 33-year-old.
A victory against the teenager would pit Azarenka against either Sloane Stephens or Jessica Pegula in the semifinals, while fourth seed Maria Sakkari is the highest-seeded player remaining in the bottom half of the draw.
The Belarusian is yet to win a title in 2022, and has been enjoying a below par season so far. A title run in Guadalajara, therefore, will go a long way in giving Victoria Azarenka the necessary confidence to start next year on a good note.