WTA: Asarenka makes another comeback attempt in Doha

Victoria Asarenka is making another comeback attempt at the upcoming Premier 5 tournament in Doha. Due to the custody dispute over her son Leo, former number one has not played an official match since July 2017.

Football superstar Tom Brady of the New England Patriots is “a legend”for Victoria Asarenka. But your real hero is a different one. And the 28-year-old makes this clear – also in the social networks. Her son Leo already has his own Instagram account (leomac7) with 8513 subscribers “I am Leo. My mommy is my photographer and my PR manager,”says the commentary. The little girl with the fighting name is a sweet blonde boy with sharp eyes, only just turned one year old, who likes to be thrown up into the air by his mother and chuckles and squeaks.”The most beautiful sound in the world is my son’s laughter”, Asarenka wrote on Twitter last week and put in a short video, which is more than a proof for her statement.

In the coming days, however, everyday life will change slightly. The small Asarenka family will soon travel from Los Angeles to Doha. At the top-class Premier 5 tournament in Qatar’s desert, the former number one, equipped with a wildcard, wants to make another comeback attempt. It’s been about seven months since “Vika” had their last official match against Simona Halep (Romania) in Wimbledon last summer. It was only her second tournament in 2017 after the baby break. And it was meant to be her last one for a long time. A legal dispute over Leo made the tour existence of the Belarussian woman impossible.

Asarenka’s ex-boyfriend Billy McKeague, American father of the joint child, had filed a custody petition with a court in LA after his separation in July 2017. submitted. And because Leo was not allowed to leave the Golden State California because of the pending proceedings, even the two-time Grand Slam winner was unable to pursue her job. At the beginning of the young season Asarenka originally wanted to start in Auckland and at the Australian Open. The wildcards were already reserved, but due to the unclear legal situation, she cancelled her participation at short notice. In the meantime, the current number 207 in the WTA ranking has achieved a legal victory. The Causa Leo is no longer negotiated in Los Angeles, but in Asarenka’s birthplace Minsk, where she apparently wants to withdraw with the junior. Her family lives there.

For her new start, the Australian Open Champion of 2012 and 2013 has brought an old acquaintance to her side as a coach. Her compatriot Vyacheslav “Slava” Konikov has been with Asarenka for four years, when she was the best junior in the world (1998-2002). Konikov gave up his position as head coach of the tennis department of Sacramento State University. More than a decade he had led the fortunes there. Prior to that, the Minsk-born tennis player was already active as a coach in professional tennis – among others alongside double legend Max Mirnyi.

For US legend Chris Evert, Asarenka, who is also responsible for the classic in Indian Wells (from 8. If Vika is fit and clear in her mind, she can regain her old performance level. It is always an enrichment,”Evert recently told the Times of India. Asarenka is allowed to start the upcoming tournaments with a “Protected Ranking”. And the memories of Doha are good. Asarenka won the title at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in 2012 and 2013. As a reward there was one golden falcon each. The bright son Leo has already examined the special trophies.