Jul 10, 2023 at 8:14 AMUpdate: an hour ago
Victoria Azarenka doesn’t understand why the Wimbledon crowd booed her on Sunday after her defeat to Elina Svitolina. The Belarusian did not shake hands with the Ukrainian after the match, but that was only because her opponent had refused anyway.
“What should I have done? Go to the net and keep waiting?” Azarenka said afterwards. “She just doesn’t want to shake hands with Russian and Belarusian people. And I respect her decision.”
Azarenka is happy that Svitolina has not shaken hands with tennis players from Russia and Belarus since the war in Ukraine. “But it’s a shame when people only focus on whether or not to shake hands. I felt I was showing respect by respecting her decision.”
Svitolina thinks that the audience did not understand why the two players did not meet afterwards. “Any player who loses and does not shake hands will be booed. Perhaps it was unclear to the spectators,” said the pupil of coach Raemon Sluiter.
“I think the tennis associations should come up with a statement that Ukrainian players will no longer shake hands with Russian or Belarusian players. I have always been clear myself. As long as there are still Russian troops in Ukraine, I will not shake hands.”
Elina Svitolina is in disbelief after reaching the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. Photo: Getty Images
Svitolina grateful for public support
In the loaded duel, Svitolina defeated her opponent in three sets: 2-6, 6-4 and 7-6 (9). The 28-year-old player, who recently returned after her pregnancy, called the victory the second happiest moment of her life. “After the birth of my daughter.”
“When I was behind, everyone in the stands was cheering me on. It almost made me cry,” said the 2019 semi-finalist, who also thought of the people in Ukraine. “I know that they too, despite their difficult situation, sympathize with me. That helps me a lot. Because of my victory, we can still experience a moment of happiness together.”
Svitolina will play in the quarterfinals against Iga Swiatek, the number one in the world, on Tuesday. The Polish won in the fourth round with great difficulty against the Swiss Belinda Bencic and even survived two match points.
On Monday at Wimbledon, the remainder of the match between Novak Djokovic and Hubert Hurkacz is on the program. The 36-year-old Serbian also won the second set via a tiebreak on Sunday just before the curfew started: 7-6 (6) and 7-6 (6).
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2023-07-10 06:14:58
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