New Delhi: There is no stopping Victoria Azarenka. Two decades after making her debut, the 35-year-old Belarusian is still going strong on the WTA circuit, achieving remarkable feats that many can only dream of. Playing in her 30th Major tournament and 14th in singles, Azarenka made a sensational start to her French Open 2025 campaign with a typical power-packed performance.
The two-time Grand Slam champion opened her Roland Garros campaign with a record-setting performance that left the fans and pundits amazed.
The veteran player stormed into the second round without breaking a sweat after completing a 48-minute ‘double bagel’ – winning without dropping a game – victory over Belgium’s Yanina Wickmayer.
A record-setting win for Azarenka
The impressive victory made the Belarusian the oldest player in the Open era to win a Grand Slam main-draw match 6-0, 6-0.
The five-time Major finalist also became the first woman to notch up a Grand Slam double bagel in three different decades.
Only Maria Sharapova and Kim Clijsters – with six each – have won more Major ties with a 6-0, 6-0 scoreline than Azarenka’s five in the last 25 years.
This was Azarenka’s first double bagel win at a Grand Slam tournament since the 2016 Australian Open.
Belgium’s Wickmayer, ranked outside the world’s top 1,000, will retire after Wimbledon this summer. Judging by her performance in the opening round match, in which she held just one game point, she can’t wait for her career to be over.
Meanwhile, Azarenka smashed 15 winners and won 49 of the 66 points on offer. Wickmayer didn’t help her cause by making 26 unforced errors.
Azarenka’s opponent in the next round will either be former Australian Open winner Sofia Kenin or France’s Varvara Gracheva.
Meanwhile, 11th seed Daniil Medvedev became the first big casualty on Day 3 of the French Open after losing an epic five-setter to British number three Cameron Norrie. The Russian ace bounced back brilliantly after losing the first two sets to claim the next two, but Norrie held on to win 5-7, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1, 5-7
Norrie will face Argentine Federico Gomez in the second round.
35-year-old Belarusian Victoria Azarenka recorded a tasty ‘double bagel’ victory against Belgium’s Yanina Wickmayer to open her French Open 2025 campaign in style. Tennis Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
