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Andy Murray & Victoria Azarenka receive Cincinnati wildcards

By Keshav Gopalan

LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 30: In this handout image provided by AELTC, Andy Murray GBR gives a Press Conference during the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club at Wimbledon on June 30, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by AELTC/Ben Queenborough via Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 30: In this handout image provided by AELTC, Andy Murray GBR gives a Press Conference during the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club at Wimbledon on June 30, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by AELTC/Ben Queenborough via Getty Images) /
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Two former world number ones, Andy Murray and Victoria “Vika” Azarenka have received wildcards from the Cincinnati Masters.

This comes after Andy Murray received a wildcard from Toronto as well as a wildcard for the Citi Open at Washington this coming week. Both Victoria Azarenka and Andy Murray have seen extended absences from the sport, with Andy Murray being out of the sport for close to a year. His decision to skip Wimbledon led to his ranking to slip to #838 in the world.

Azarenka’s reason for absence is her custody battle with her ex-husband over their son.

The statement from the tournament

“The resumes for Vika and Andy really speak for themselves,” tournament director Andre Silva said in a news release. “I think many tennis fans are eager to see each of them back on the court, and we are pleased to offer them both wild cards to play the Western & Southern Open.”

There is currently no statement from either player.

Past Victories

Both players have won the tournament, with Victoria Azarenka winning the tournament in 2013, beating rival and friend Serena Williams in the final. Meanwhile, Murray has won the tournament twice, in 2008 and 2016. Both Azarenka and Murray last played the tournament in 2016.

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How will they fair?

Andy Murray is slated to play the Citi Open in Washington next week, while Azarenka will be playing in San Jose. Depending on how they play in their warm-up tournaments, it’ll remain to be seen if they can perform well.

Next. Pepe Imaz’s departure could mark another renaissance in Novak’s career. dark

Both players have had encouraging starts to their comebacks, but due to limited matches, especially in Murray’s case, it’s difficult to ascertain just how well they’re playing and if they can start winning so soon. It’s safe to say that hopes and expectations should be tempered.

What do you think? Can the pair fair well in Cincinnati?

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