Victoria Azarenka opens up about facing negative comments, reveals they can be "really cruel," making her question herself

Two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka recently revealed that she is often subjected to negative opinions and comments, which leave her hurting and questioning herself.

Azarenka began her 2023 Australian Open campaign on Monday, securing a 6-4, 7-6 (3) win over 2020 champion Sofia Kenin. The 33-year-old will face Nadia Podoroska in the second round.

While speaking to the media after her win, the Belarusian was asked if playing in the Australian Open fills her with more positive emotions given she is a two-time champion at the event. Revealing that she seldom looks back at the past, Azarenka added that her title wins include both positive and negative memories.

"I feel like I have never really looked back, you know, to be honest. Like, I don't look back at what happened too much. I get a lot of questions about, Well, how did you feel when you won here, et cetera, and it's very hard for me to tell, because mostly what you remember is good memories, right? My road to the trophies was far away from being smooth," Victoria Azarenka said.

Azarenka explained that she prefers to take things slowly and one at a time to avoid being overwhelmed by emotions. She also highlighted how difficult it can be to deal with negative responses from people.

"So it's very selective things. So I try not to really focus on that. I try to, what I said kind of earlier, is see how I feel day by day, because that keeps me a little bit more grounded," she said.

"That keeps me a little bit more sane, as well, because I think it's pretty easy to go crazy with all the pressure and expectation and, you know, opinions, comments, and et cetera. So I'm trying to find something that is healthy for me, that I feel is more stable," she continued.

A reporter then asked the former World No. 1 if she finds it easy to shut herself out from negative comments. She replied in the negative, pointing out how some remarks can be "really cruel" to the point of affecting her mentally.

"Not always. I think sometimes it can be really cruel. I think that I ask myself the question, at some point when it really gets to you, I'm like, Am I really that person? You get judged by people who don't know you," Azarenka said.

"So I cannot say, no, it doesn't, and I don't look at anything and I just, you know, block it out. I love hearing when people say that I do," she continued.

"It was a nerve-racking match for me" - Victoria Azarenka describes her win over Sofia Kenin

Victoria Azarenka in action against Sofia Kenin

During her press conference, Victoria Azarenka revealed that she suffered from a considerable bout of nerves during her match against Sofia Kenin. She believes that she did not play at her best and was happy to secure the win.

"Yeah, it was a nerve-racking match for me, for sure. It's never easy to start a tournament, I feel like. The Grand Slam, you know, something that you work so hard for," the Belarusian said.

"So I definitely had quite a few nerves. I felt like my game wasn't at the best today, but I was able to find a way to win, which is I think important to do, especially for me, I feel that mentally I stayed really strong and I kept looking for solutions," she added.