"Whole situation could have been prevented from the beginning, it became a bit of a circus" - Victoria Azarenka on Novak Djokovic's deportation saga
Victoria Azarenka registered a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Jil Teichmann in the second round of the 2022 Australian Open on Wednesday. The Belarusian dominated from start to finish and did not drop serve even once during the contest.
Speaking at a post-match press conference, Azarenka said she was satisfied with her performance, especially the way she took control of points in the important moments.
"I think it was a very solid match from the beginning to the end, pretty consistent. I thought that my game plan was very well executed and I took my chances. I think I played really well on the important moments. And when I had opportunities, I was really going for them," she said.
During the presser, Azarenka was also asked to comment on Novak Djokovic's vaccination saga that dominated headlines leading up to the Australian Open. The Serb flew to Melbourne with a medical exemption but had his visa revoked twice and was ultimately deported on Sunday.
Azarenka, on her part, feels the entire situation could have been avoided if there had been better communication between all parties involved.
"To be fair, I believe this whole situation could have been prevented from the beginning. I don't believe that this was something that just came out of nowhere. This could have been prevented. This could have been addressed way earlier than it was at this point," she said.
"What happened after, I don't believe there was anybody who looked good in any case. That became, you know, a bit of a circus. I think there should be a really hard look on this situation moving forward," she added.
Azarenka has time and again urged her fellow players and the general public to get vaccinated against COVID-19. When asked about whether the WTA should impose a vaccine mandate in the near future, the Belarusian said that in her opinion, that would be the right way to go.
However, she was quick to point out that she did not want to force her beliefs onto anyone else.
"Well, from my standpoint it's been very clear. I believe in science. I believe in getting vaccinated. I don't want to push my beliefs on everybody else. However, we are playing a global sport that are traveling around the world. As an entity, as an association of WTA, that is traveling globally, we still have to respect countries, different mandates, different legalities of the country."
"I don't necessarily say that [by] getting vaccinated, nobody will be sick, but I think it is a step to hopefully battle against this coronavirus, hopefully bring it down globally. But to make it as a mandate, there is much more to it. If you ask me just for my opinion if that should be the case, I think it would just be helpful for everybody in the world, especially when we are traveling internationally," she clarified.
We will continue to make efforts to make sure that Peng Shuai is safe: Victoria Azarenka
During the press conference, Azarenka also spoke about Peng Shuai's disappearance following sexual harassment allegations she leveled at a former Chinese Premier.
In the wake of the accusations and the Chinese's disappearance, many players voiced their support, with the #whereIsPengShuai hashtag trending on Twitter. The WTA also took a strong stand and decided to suspend tournaments in China until they received confirmation of her safety.
When asked about the matter, Azarenka clarified that there has not been much progress made, but that the ultimate goal was to hear from Peng Shuai personally.
"There hasn't been that much development in terms of contact with Peng Shuai even though from our side we will continue to make any and all efforts to make sure that she is safe, she feels comfortable. Hopefully we will get to hear from her personally at some point. I think that's the goal, the main goal right now."
She also appreciated the tennis community's efforts so far in showcasing their support for the Chinese during such an "unfortunate" situation.
"As an association, women's association, I am proud that we are supporting our players. I think that kind of should go without saying. The situation is really unfortunate. We all hope for the best," the 32-year-old added.