“My heart stays at home” Emotional Dayana Yastremska calls her Lyon Open match ‘hardest’ amid horrifying circumstances in Ukraine
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Dayana Yastremska
Dayana Yastremska, a Ukrainian tennis player, made a winning start to her week in Lyon just days after leaving her homeland. Dayana, 21, arrived in France last week via Romania after fleeing the war in her own country with her 15-year-old sister Ivanna. Her sister and she were handed a wildcard entry for the Lyon Open.
After Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a military operation in Ukraine, the world is in upheaval. As Russian soldiers intensified their attack, Russian missiles blasted the capital and other parts of the country. As a result, some families were forced to flee their homes and seek refuge in shelters. Ukraine is in complete disarray; bombs are falling on the country, hundreds are dying, thousands are fleeing the country.
After Russia launched a full-scale attack on Ukraine last week, the Yastremska sisters fled the country. The sisters travelled to France after taking a ferry from Ukraine to Romania. The 21-year-old said that her parents were the ones who decided to take them out of Ukraine, and she sent an emotional letter to them on her official Instagram account.
Yastremska stated she and her sister Ivanna didn’t have as much enthusiasm for their doubles match in Lyon because of what has been going on in Ukraine. The Yastremska sisters lost their Lyon doubles opening 6-2 6-4 to Georgina Garcia-Perez and Xenia Knoll on Monday. Yastremska revealed after the match that they did not have the right energy due to what was happening in their country.
Dayana Yastremska describes her state after pulling off a stunning win in her singles match
However, she managed to pull off a big win after being on the verge of losing in the first round of the tournament against Ana Bogdan winning the match 3-6, 7-6, 7-6. Dayana addressed the press after the match and expressed her happiness to have won the match for her country. Because of the conditions back home, Dayana, who was wearing the Ukrainian flag on her shoulders, said it was really challenging to attain the appropriate balance and attention.
“But I’m happy, at least, I’m also fighting for my country,” Dayana added, noting that the victory is little compared to what is occurring in her nation. “I’m happy that I won for my country, but at the same time, I’m very sad. My heart stays at home, and my mind is fighting here, so it’s very difficult to find the concentration, to find the balance.
“This win, compared to what’s going on in my country, is nothing. But I’m happy, at least, I’m also fighting for my country. I’m really proud of the Ukrainians and they’re really heroes. I hope everything is going to finish soon,” said Dayana during the press conference.
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Shilpi Pusadkar
(106 Articles Published)