Victoria Azarenka at centre of icon's stunning Australian Open claim
The Aussie tennis icon has been left gobsmacked by the two-time champion at the Australian Open.
Alicia Molik has expressed her admiration and disbelief over two-time champion Victoria Azarenka's remarkable resurgence at the Australian Open. The 33-year-old mother-of-one has turned back the clock at Melbourne Park in 2023, romping into Thursday night's semi-final against Elena Rybakina off the back of the sort of form that saw her claim back-to-back Australian Open titles in 2012 and 2013.
Azarenka has the chance to join an exclusive club if she can lift the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup for a third time, with only three other mothers managing that feat in the past. Aussie legends Margaret Court and Evonne Goolagong Cawley won singles titles at Melbourne Park as mothers, while Belgian Kim Clijsters was the most recent to do so when she reigned supreme in 2011.
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History beckons for Azarenka if she can get past Rybakina on Thursday night and then win the final 10 years after her last Melbourne Park triumph. That decade-long feat would smash the record for the longest gap between titles that Virginia Wade set in 1977 when she won the Wimbledon crown five-and-a-half years after her Australian Open victory.
Incredibly, Molik insists the big-hitting Belarusian is a better player now - more than six years after giving birth to son Leo in December 2016 - than when she romped to consecutive titles in Melbourne 10 years ago. The former Aussie star and commentator says it's clear Azarenka has "beefed up" her game and worked hard on imposing herself more on court during a "big pre-season".
"She's playing for more, we all know now she's a mother and the appreciation too, I think when you're out of the game, and she's been out with a couple of injuries in the past, but for a longer period of time through the birth of her son, and raising a young family, and I think she's embracing every moment that she has on centre court," Molik told Wide World of Sports.
"She's playing more aggressively and what a match it was against her great mate in Jessica Pegula [in their quarter final] and she really did dispose of her quite comfortably. "
Azarenka is enjoying a career resurgence at Melbourne Park in 2023, ten years after winning the second of her two singles titles there. The Belarusian player remains the last women's player to have successfully defended their Australian Open crown, thanks to her back to back wins in 2012 and 2013.
It's been a difficult few seasons for the former champion. Azarenka hadn't made it to the fourth round of a slam since the 2020 US Open, crediting her resurgence to a change in mindset.
“I played with a lot of fear and anxiety so it really was difficult to be brave and to make the right choices in the important moments when you feel anxious and hesitant,” she said. “I worked a lot on my mindset and challenged myself on my things I wouldn’t really do before and pushed myself forward.”
Plenty has changed for Azarenka in the 10 years since her last semi-final in Melbourne but her aggressive baseline play has offered a telling reminder about her past triumphs.. Azarenka took time away from the sport when she gave birth to son Leo and returned to the WTA tour in 2018 after a drawn-out custody battle with her former partner, Billy McKeague. Now at the age of 33, the Belarusian has the chance to become a three-time Australian Open winner and Molik says it's an inspirational story for women around the world.
Molik says Azarenka's extraordinary comeback sends a strong message to other women that they can successfully combine a career at the elite level of sport, with a family. The Aussie stressed, however, that she still finds it 'remarkable' the Belarusian has returned to Melbourne Park in 2023 looking "better than ever". Molik sees no reason why Azarenka can't can't cause another boilover against the reigning Wimbledon champion on Thursday night.
"What a competitor she is and she's never lost that, Victoria Azarenka," Molik added. "Such a phenomenal performance for her so far to get to the semis. She's just getting started."
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