A frustrated Victoria Azarenka reached the French Open second round after briefly refusing to play in “completely ridiculous” conditions in Paris.
At 2-1 in the opening set, Azarenka left the court after a debate with officials, saying it was “too cold”. The Belarusian 10th seed, wearing a jacket and leggings, eventually returned to beat Montenegro’s Danka Kovinic 6-1 6-2 in just over one hour.
“I’m glad that I’m able to finish and now I can watch everybody struggle with this weather,” said Azarenka, who was runner-up at this month’s US Open in her first Grand Slam final for seven years. “I’m happy for quite a strong start. It wasn’t easy but I felt I was pretty focused.”
This year’s French Open was delayed from its usual spot at the end of May because of the coronavirus pandemic and the autumnal setting has brought new challenges. The weather forecast in Paris on Sunday was for gusty winds and rain and highs of 14C.
Rain was in the air and the wind was whipping up the clay on a deserted Court Suzanne Lenglen as the former world number one began her contest with Kovinic. After three games, which all went with serve, Azarenka sat down on her chair and asked to see the supervisor. She was asked to wait on court to see if conditions improved but refused.
“I’m not sitting here because I am going to get frozen,” she said. “I’m not waiting here a couple of minutes because I am cold, it’s eight degrees. I live in Florida, I am used to hot weather.
After checking with Kovinic, who also said she did not want to wait, Azarenka added: “No, it’s completely ridiculous. It’s too cold, what’s the point, sitting here like ducks.”
Azarenka swiftly won the opening set after the players returned following a delay of around 45 minutes, and then took the second in 30 minutes to progress to the second round.
