Tennis players receive threatening messages, including photos of a gun, demanding they lose matches

Two women's tennis players were sent threatening messages, each receiving a photograph of a weapon and being ordered to suffer matches.

Panna Udvardy and Lucrezia Stefanini elaborate the disturbing messages successful which they and their families were threatened.

"Last nighttime astir midnight I received respective precise disturbing messages connected WhatsApp from an chartless fig connected my idiosyncratic phone. The idiosyncratic told maine that if I didn’t suffer my lucifer today, they would harm members of my family," Udvardy posted connected Instagram, on with screenshots of the messages, regarding her lucifer against Anhelina Kalinina astatine the Megasaray Hotels Open, which she mislaid successful 2 sets.

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Lucrezia Stefanini and Panna Udvardy some received threatening messages, ordering them to suffer caller tennis matches. (Flaviu Buboi, Robert Prangevia Getty Images)

"They said they knew wherever my household lives, what cars they thrust and that they had their telephone numbers. They adjacent sent photos of my household members and a representation of a gun."

The connection Udvardy received said the culprit oregon culprits "know everything astir your household and you" and were "ready for warfare if necessary, and we won't hesitate to nonstop them to your mother's location to kidnap her until she returns the wealth we would suffer due to the fact that of your disobedience."

Udvardy said she contacted the Women's Tennis Association, and 3 further constabulary officers were sent to her lucifer "which I’m highly grateful for." Police besides went to her parents and grandmother’s homes, she added.

Panna Udvardy of Hungary successful enactment against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova successful the Women's Singles archetypal circular lucifer connected Day 2 of the French Open astatine Roland Garros connected May 27, 2024, successful Paris, France.   (Robert Prange/Getty Images)

The connection Stefanini received was eerily similar.

"I received a WhatsApp connection successful which I was threatened implicit winning yesterday's match. They threatened maine and my household and named my parents, the spot wherever I was born, and they sent maine a photograph of a gun," Stefanini said successful an Instagram station of her own. 

Stefanini, too, told the WTA astir the situation, and she besides received boosted security.

"I'm making this video and explaining what happened due to the fact that I don't deliberation it's close to enactment maine nether this unit and unease earlier a match," Stefanini said.

Lucrezia Stefanini of Italy successful enactment during time 1 of the Upper Austria Ladies Linz 2024 connected Jan. 28, 2024, successful Linz, Austria. (Alexander Scheuber/Getty Images for MatchMaker)

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Udvardy said the messages are "not normal."

"Even arsenic athletes oregon nationalist figures, it’s not acceptable to person threats against our families, particularly not connected our backstage telephone numbers and alongside disturbing images. We should not normalize maltreatment similar this successful sport."

Stefanini mislaid her Indian Wells qualifying lucifer successful 3 sets.

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