Watch: Azarenka the teacher, Djokovic the singer and celebrity ball boy
Melbourne: Do not call Victoria Azarenka - Vicky. After winning her third-round match at the ongoing Australian Open, Azarenka seized the opportunity to correct her fans.
"I love playing in front of you guys," Azarenka said into the microphone during her on-court interview. "One thing I don't know is why everybody keeps calling me Vicky, but Vicky is not my name," said the two-time Australian Open champion, with a smile. "It's Vika, Victoria, V but Vicky is not my name," Azarenka added.
Azarenka, who is unseeded as she returns from a horror 2014 when she battled injury and depression, cruised past Czech 25th seed Barbora Zahlavova Strycova 6-4, 6-4
The crowd laughed and applauded, and one lone voice was heard shouting out "Vicky!!"
A word to Azarenka about the local vernacular: In Australia, where just about everyone and everything has a nickname, Victorias are often known as Vicky.
Vicky, that's not my name! #Azarenka corrects the crowd after her 3R #ausopen win http://t.co/rs2QmCAElg
— Australian Open (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2015Novak Djokovic advanced to the fourth round of the Australian Open for the ninth consecutive year with a 7-6 (8), 6-3, 6-4 win over Fernando Verdasco on Saturday.
Four-time champion Djokovic won the tiebreaker on his fourth set point when Verdasco hit consecutive shots wide.
The No. 1-ranked Djokovic broke the Spanish left-hander at the start of the second set, then saved two break points with consecutive aces to take a 3-0 lead.
This win was indeed a special one for the top seed as January 24 is his mom’s birthday. During the post-match interview, Djokovic took the opportunity to sing the birthday song for his mom. The crowd too joined the tennis star and it was quite a watch.
The #RLA crowd wish a big Happy Birthday to Djokovic's mum #ausopen- http://t.co/QnmgeejXQf
— Australian Open (@AustralianOpen) January 24, 2015OUCH: The ball boy is standing at attention, hands behind his back, when along comes a speeding serve by Feliciano Lopez. OUCH, and the boy doubles over.
A video making the rounds on YouTube has made the boy a minor celebrity, Lopez said after winning his third-round match on Saturday, two days after the incident. "He became very famous with his mates at school. Everybody was watching the video," Lopez said.
The ball-boy was hit in the groin during Lopez's second-round match. During his day off between rounds, Lopez went to find him, bearing gifts. "I just wanted to apologise and to make him happy for a while," he said. "I gave him a T-shirt and a wristband from the match," he added.
Recounting the incident, Lopez said the boy was "OK, after five, six minutes" and wanted to return to the court. "I told him, 'No, better that you sit down for a while and then come back. This is what he did. Luckily he is perfect, and he is fine," Lopez said.
No hard feelings. @feliciano_lopez apologises to Sam the ballkid for 'that serve' http://t.co/vpg8e93Sb1 #ausopen pic.twitter.com/eHIrx44MUV
— Australian Open (@AustralianOpen) January 23, 2015