Pro-Armenian message expressed the Australian Open match by a Russian Tennis star that sparked a complaint from Azerbaijan tennis officials. For more Olympics tennis news here!
After the controversial message during the Australian Open, Karen Khachanov has defended himself after his Armenian message of support over the ongoing conflict at Nagorno-Karabakh, which said: “Keep believing until the very end. Artsakh, hold on!” You may visit us for upcoming Wimbledon live updates and news here!
On the background regarding the issue, the ethnically Armenian area of Nagorno-Karabakh and known by separatist as the Artsakh Republic, which broke away from Azerbaijan with the support from Armenia after a bloody post-Soviet ethnic conflict in the early 1900s.
After that message in the Australian Open done by Khachanov, the Azerbaijan Tennis Federation posted a letter online that indicates a protest to Australian Open organizers and the ITF (International Tennis Federation), it demanded the Russian Tennis star to be punished with harsh measures:
“Writing heartfelt wishes on the camera lens is a kind of tradition in tennis, but Khachanov abused this, using it in his dirty plans,” it stated. Khachanov said he was not aware of the letter and had not been told to stop his post-match messages “so far”. The Russian smasher has been repeatedly citing his Armenian roots, which he got from his father.
“I say many times I have Armenian roots,” he said to reporters at the Melbourne Park after his quarterfinal victory on Tuesday. “From my father’s side, from my grandfather’s side, even from my mom’s side. I’m half Armenian … to be honest. I don’t want to go deeper than that, and I just wanted to show strength and support to my people. That’s it.”
The Australian Open organization has taken a stance on political issues during the tournament, with one banning Russian flags which serves as a support to Ukraine. Even Russian and Belarusian players were banned from Wimbledon last year, right after the invasion of Ukraine however they can compete as individual athletes without national team affiliation at the Australian Open
The tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan have been locked in a conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh for decades, with the two sides engaged in another war in 2020 that lasted for almost six weeks and ended with thousands of casualties on both sides before a Russian-broked cease-fire, ending in Armenians’ losing control over parts of the region and the adjacent districts.
Armenia claims that the road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh has been blocked by Azerbaijan for more than a month, which the Azerbaijan side denies and has now written to the International Tennis Federation urging an immediate action about Khachanov.
In the quarterfinal, yesterday, Khachanov, the World No. 26 walked over USA’s Korda with a score line of 7-6, 6-3, 3-0. The Russian Tennis Star will next face formidable talent from Greece in the semi-finals this January 27 (PST), in Stefanos Tsitsipas.
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