Teen tennis star says she ‘deserved’ to be hit by her father for losing match.

A sixteen-year-old Romanian tennis player has said she “deserved” to be hit by her father and tennis coach, after he struck her around the head when she lost a tournament in Israel over the weekend.

When Andrada Surdeanu failed to progress to the quarter-finals, her father confiscated her phone as punishment. However, when she refused to comply the teenager’s father slapped Andrada in the face, causing her to bleed from her nose.

Andrada Surdeanu  (image via Facebook). 

In her own words, Andrada described what happened, saying:

I didn’t play well in that match. At the end, he went to confiscate my phone. That’s the way he punishes me when it is my fault and I don’t win matches. I was annoyed and I threw the phone at him and said “take it”.

Of course he didn’t catch it, and he got angry because of the way I’ve behaved. He pushed me and slapped me twice. One of the slaps hit my nose.

I sat down on my knees, and I put my hands on my face so he would not be able to hit me again. I had a little blood, I was scared and shaking.

He gave me a wet towel and said that I should go to the tournament’s doctor. When I came back, he was already kicked out from the tennis court and they told me he had been sent to the hotel.

By the time I got to the hotel, they had already arrested him. The umpires took me to the police station. On our way, we stopped near a police car. It had bars on the back seat and when I looked inside I saw my dad.

Witnesses say umpires rushed to call police to the scene. Andrada was treated by doctors to stem the blood flow, while her father was detained by authorities and charged $AU350 for his actions.

Andrada with her father (image via Facebook).

Now on the mend, the tennis player has taken to Facebook today to defend her father’s actions. In an emotional post she said that he father should not be condemned for slapping her face:

My father is not a beast, he didn’t break my nose; I didn’t have my face covered in blood. It’s true, he slapped me once. So what? I deserved it.

It was my fault because I’ve yelled and said some words to him. I was irresponsible after all the sacrifices he made for me. I admit that I was scared in that moment, but I know he regrets what he did and he loves me.

He maybe exaggerated a little, but he didn’t deserve to be arrested. I’m worried for him. I want to continue this journey in tennis with the support of the whole family.

When I read that he is described as a “criminal” and a “beast”, I feel like I want to scream. I feel guilty for what is happening.’

Andrada Surdeanu  (image via Facebook). 

News outlets today are reporting the tennis sensation is panicked by the thought of her father in a jail cell. She is also worried about whether these actions will impact on her future career aspirations.

Ms Surdeanu said, “I’ve played tennis for 10 years, and I have the feeling that this episode is going to follow me for the rest of my life. Maybe I want to go to a tennis academy in the United States, to play there. But who will accept me if they know I was hit by my father?”