“Usually when I step on court, I forget about my problems. But here it hit me badly!” – Ukraine’s Zanevska panics after hearing siren on court

The Ukrainian player went on to lose in three sets to American Katie Volynets

Maryna Zanevska at the 2022 Hamburg Open Image Credit: Imago / Panoramic

May 4, 2023

It’s hard to imagine the stress and trauma that comes with seeing your country under attack and siege. The effects can last long and come up at unexpected times as Maryna Zanevska and tennis fans realised on Wednesday.

Third seeded Zanevska, ranked 75th in the world, was playing American Katie Volynets in the second round of the Siant-Melo Open in France.

After winning the first set, the 29-year-old began to cry on court after being overcome by stress and panic. That panic was triggered by a siren going off. Zanevska carried on to play but eventually went on to lose the match 6-2, 4-6, 5-7.

The Ukrainian player later posted an update on Instagram in which she explained why the siren triggered her panic button.

Belgian tennis player Maryna Zanevska, born in Odesa, Ukraine, recalls a nerve-wracking moment at the WTA 125 tournament in Saint-Malo (France) when a siren went off 😟🫂 pic.twitter.com/ayI6T8bSF8
— Ukrainian Tennis • BTU (@ukrtennis_eng) May 3, 2023

“I had very weird feeling today during my match after winning first set. I have no idea why but the siren was on! For maybe 20 seconds but felt like forever!”, she said in her post. “”I have never been in Ukraine since 24th of February. I never experienced siren. But it was such a trigger point sound. My heartbeat was 200! I was overwhelmed. Usually when I step on court, it’s my place where I forget about my problems. But here it hit me badly!”

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