A dramatic week indeed! Bianca Andreescu and Donna Vekic faced each other in the second round of the Summer Olympics. While the Canadian looked poised to continue her upward trajectory, her destiny seemed to have other plans. In the second set of the game, Andreescu hit herself on the thumb of her left hand with the racquet, during a forehand shot, while trailing 2-0. This left the Canadian star in pain and agony and she was spotted breaking into tears during the medical timeout. But what followed was a bizarre remark from Vekic, which has brought her enough flak. Latest to join the fray is former’s mother Maria Andreescu.

Speaking to Sportske Novosti, Vekic said, “At first, I really thought she was going to give up. She screamed so much that I thought she was going to die, but she continued playing normally. I lost my concentration after that, which I shouldn’t have.” However, statements do not seem to be well received by the tennis fans who lashed her out for the remarks.

“Donna Vekic’s quotes after the match… disgusting and disrespectful if they’re to be true,” a fan wrote highlighting the woes of Andreescu. Similar sentiments followed from other fans as well. And the latest to slam the Croatian player is Andreescu’s mother herself. Responding to the Tweet, Maria expressed her unhappiness over the statement. “Simply bad people. No respect.” 

Remember, Andreescu has remained away from the tennis courts for a long period. She was diagnosed with a stress fracture in her back that forced her to remain on hiatus for a 10-month period before returning to the courts in the French Open, this year. But for Vekic, this is not the only controversy she has found herself engulfed in. 

Vekic faced Coco Gauff in her third round and was forced to be a victim of yet another controversy. As the American was trailing in the match, a shot by Vekic in the second set was called out by the line umpire. Coco perceived that she won the point and hit the ball out herself. But the umpire soon declared that the shot was played inside the line. While the point should have been played again, the umpire decided to give the point to Vekic. This did not just make Gauff furious, who was seen crying inconsolably, but also resulted in fans booing at Vekic. The 28-year-old was evidently displeased even after winning the match against Gauff.

Coming back to Bianca, the star player has made her fans worry yet again about her health. But, how is the Canadian star doing after the injury? 

Andreescu demonstrates resilience after exiting from the Olympics

Andreescu demonstrated the resilience that many fail to depict in her second-round match. Despite being in intense pain, she made a return and won 4 of the next 5 points, thereby giving a major scare to Vekic. But more than that, her injury update is a relief to her fans.  Taking to Instagram after the match, Andreescu gave an update about her injury.

“Bit of a scare today with my thumb during my match… bad news is that it happened when it happened :(… but good news is that it’s nothing too serious!” She further demonstrated her zeal to keep fighting. “Now getting ready for @nbotoronto ❤️ 💪🏼 gotta move on and move forward! Thank you for all the nice messages. They mean a lot, especially during moments like this 🙏🏼 ,” Andreescu wrote on her Instagram story.”

For the unversed, the tennis player will now participate in the National Bank Open in Toronto to prepare for her hard-court campaign. For Donna Vekic, it will be interesting to see if she can continue her winning momentum amidst all the negativities she is witnessing in her Olympic campaign. Will Vekic return with a medal? Only time will tell.