Lesia Tsurenko says 'panic attack' caused her withdrawal from BNP Paribas Open

In a surprise to the assembled crowd at Stadium 1 at the BNP Paribas Open, Sunday night's second match was scratched seconds before it was to begin as qualifier Lesia Tsurenko withdrew from her scheduled clash with No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka.

Tsurenko, a 33-year-old from Ukraine, was seen warming up on a practice court two hours before the match, working on her serve before facing Sabalenka, a Belarusian player who won the Australian Open. The tournament's official word was that she retired for "personal reasons."

However, on Monday Tsurenko explained her decision to the website Big Tennis Ukraine, and she said she had a panic attack before the match stemming from a conversation she had with WTA CEO Steve Simon earlier in the week regarding Russian and Belarusian tennis players.

“A few days ago, I had a conversation with our WTA CEO, Steve Simon, and I was absolutely shocked by what I heard. He told me that he himself does not support the war, but if the players from Russia and Belarus support it, then this is only their own opinion and the opinion of other people should not upset me. At the same time, he noted that if this had happened to him and he had been in my place, he would have felt terrible.”

She went on to say: “I was completely shocked by this conversation and in the last match (her first-round match against Donna Vekic) it was incredibly difficult to play. When it was time to go to the court (Sunday night), I had a panic attack and I simply could not go out there. I just broke down mentally.”

Tsurenko has played multiple matches against Russian and Belarusian players since the war began more than a year ago, so Sunday night's matchup was not a first.

The WTA released a statement regarding the matter:

“First and foremost, we acknowledge the emotions Lesia and all of our Ukrainian athletes have and continue to manage during this very difficult period of time. We are witnessing an ongoing horrific war that continues to bring unforeseen circumstances with far-reaching consequences that are affecting the world, as well as the global WTA Tour and its members.

“The WTA has consistently reflected our full support for Ukraine and strongly condemn the actions that have been brought forth by the Russian government. With this, a fundamental principle of the WTA remains, which is ensuring that individual athletes may participate in professional tennis events based on merit and without any form of discrimination, and not penalized due to the decisions made by the leadership of their country.”

This marks the eighth time in her last 15 events that Tsurenko has withdrawn mid-tournament, and that doesn't include last year's BNP Paribas Open where she withdrew during qualifying matches.

Sabalenka received the walkover and will move into the Round of 16 to face Barbora Krejcikova, the 16-seed here.

Tsurenko also withdrew fro the most recent event in Monterrey. She withdrew from the Monterrey Open while playing Donna Vekic after Tsurenko won the first set 6-2, but trailed 5-0 in the second set. This week in Indian Wells, Tsurenko and Vekic faced off again with Tsurenko, a qualifier, pulling off the upset over the 29th-seeded Vekic. At the end of the match, Vekic refused to shake Tsurenko's hand.

Tsurenko also withdrew from the Merida Open Akron in February after trailing Katerina Siniakova 7-5.

She withdrew from an ITF leading up to the Australian Open in January after making the semifinals.

She withdrew from the Slovenia Open in September before a quarterfinal against Elena Rybakina.

She withdrew from the Hungarian Open in July trailing Yulia Putintseva 6-0, 2-0

She withdrew from the Eastbourne International in June before a quarterfinal against Beatriz Haddad Maia.

She withdrew from the Istanbul Cup in April while trailing Ajla Tomljanovic 6-4, 1-0.

For the fans who had filed into Stadium 1 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden on Sunday night, a women's doubles match was moved into the big stadium as the team of Kirsten Flipkins and Bethanie Mattek-Sands faced off against Miyu Kato and Aldila Sutjiadi.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Lesia Tsurenko says 'panic attack' caused her withdrawal from BNP Paribas Open