World number six Agnieszka Radwanska launched a verbal attack on Victoria Azarenka, the world’s leading female player, after reaching the semi-finals of the Dubai Open on Thursday. The 22-year-old Pole said she was “angry” and had lost respect for the superbly in-form Belarussian, alleging that Azarenka’s behaviour in Doha last week had not been good for the image of the game. Radwanska appeared to be referring to Azarenka’s hobbling and wincing between rallies during parts of their semi-final match, whilst still moving well enough during the rallies to secure a solid straight sets win.
It follows Radwanska’s criticisms of grunting in the women’s game last month after losing to Azarenka in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. Radwanska’s latest comments came when she was asked in a press conference here whether she had been annoyed at the end of last week’s loss in Doha. She replied: “Well, to be honest, I don’t think this is worth a comment. But I think after this match….just lost a lot of respect. That’s it. “If you do this in the match, if anyone didn’t see the match, I think it’s just a quick look on YouTube and you’ll know what was going on,” she continued.
The questioner responded by saying that he had not been seeking for Radwanska to criticize another player, but she continued anyway. “Yeah, I was angry because I don’t think this is the great image for the women’s tennis, what was going on there,” she added. “So, yeah, unfortunately.” Youtube clips show Radwanska offering a peremptory handshake to Azarenka with no eye contact at the end of the match, and include a TV commentator saying that Azarenka’s behavior had affected her opponent’s focus.