Lepchenko to reach the quarterfinals at the US Open. She then lost in three sets to second seed Simona Halep. 2016: Sunshine Double, re-entry into top 5, injuries and pregnancy hiatus Azarenka started her season at the Brisbane International in Australia. She reached the final after defeating Elena Vesnina, Ysaline Bonaventure, eighth seed Roberta Vinci and surprise qualifier Samantha Crawford. She faced fourth seed Angelique Kerber in the final and won the title without losing a set in the entire tournament. This was her 18th WTA title and her first since the 2013 Western & Southern Open. At the Australian Open, Azarenka was seeded 14th and reached the quarterfinals without dropping a set, including a double-bagel win over Alison Van Uytvanck. However, in her quarterfinal match she was defeated in straight sets by seventh seed and eventual champion Angelique Kerber, who had never defeated Azarenka in their previous six matches. Azarenka was ahead in the second set but failed to convert five set points. Azarenka played her first 250-point International event since 2011 in Acapulco, Mexico. She withdrew after a first-round win over Polona Hercog. Azarenka next played, and won, at Indian Wells. The title included wins over Serena Williams, Karolína Plíšková, and a double-bagel win over Magdaléna Rybáriková. Her ranking rose to No. 8 after Indian Wells. Two weeks later, Azarenka beat Svetlana Kuznetsova in the Miami final to become only the third player to win the Indian Wells-Miami double in the same year. The title included a straight-sets revenge defeat of Angelique Kerber in the semifinals and a win over Garbiñe Muguruza in the fourth round in their first meeting. Her ranking rose to No. 5 afterwards. Azarenka started her clay-court season at the Madrid Open as the fourth seed. She cruised through the first two rounds with wins over Laura Robson and Alizé Cornet. However, she withdrew from her third-round match with Louisa Chirico citing a back injury. After losing to Irina-Camelia Begu in her first match in Rome, she retired from her first round match against Karin Knapp at the French Open, citing a knee injury. The same injury led her to withdraw from Wimbledon. Azarenka announced her pregnancy through social media on 15 July, and missed the rest of the 2016 season as a result. On 20 December 2016, Azarenka gave birth to a boy named Leo; she subsequently split from his father and a