Victoria Azarenka Can’t Compete At The French Open

Professional Belarusian tennis player Victoria Azarenka will not be making it to the French Open this year. ABC News reported that Victoria has a recurring injury on her left foot that has forced her to withdraw from the competition.

The same injury has caused Azarenka to withdraw from other sporting events throughout the year. Victoria has competed in the French Open before, having been a semi-finalist just last year. In fact, this will be the first time in three years that Victoria Azarenka has dropped out from one of the top four slots.

According to ESPN, Azarenka last played on tour at Indian Wells, California on March 7. It’s obvious that Victoria’s foot has been causing her problems for awhile now, and it was likely the cause of her almost immediate loss at Indian Wells, which you can read about here.

Victoria sustained the injury to her left foot shortly before the Australian Open. Instead of dropping out then and taking some time to rest, Victoria kept playing through the pain. She might be regretting that decision now.

Before the tournament, Azarenka said:

“I want to do the best I can. What I expect for myself is to fight for every ball. The rest is a little bit of an unknown for me right now. The first match is going to happen. I’m going to go out there and I’m going to play. The most important thing for me is that my foot feels good. The rest you can practice it, you can get better at it, and I’m not worried about it.”

The Australian Open may have been Victoria’s downfall, but she has already won the honor of Australian Open champion twice and was a two-time runner up of the US Open, according to ABC News.

Victoria posted the disappointing news via Twitter yesterday, claiming that she hopes to get back onto the tennis court as soon as possible. Her fans and followers were very supportive and sent her a storm of encouraging tweets and well-wishes, which Victoria was very grateful to receive.

Hi Guys – Unfortunately I will not be able to compete in Roland Garros this year. Working hard on my recovery & getting back on the court.

— victoria azarenka (@vika7) May 19, 2014

I just want to thank you all for your support. It means a lot to me. Be in touch soon! Love -V

— victoria azarenka (@vika7) May 19, 2014

[Image courtesy of Xinhuanet]