Tennis star alerts police after blackmailer demands ‘lose match or your family dies’ and sends gun photograph
A Hungarian tennis player has revealed a series of alarming WhatsApp messages demanding she deliberately lose her quarter-final match at the Antalya WTA 125 tournament in Turkey.
Panna Udvardy, 27, currently ranked 95th in the world, said the threats arrived on her personal phone from an unknown number late on Thursday evening.
Following her defeat on Friday, she wrote on Instagram: “Last night around midnight I received several very disturbing messages on WhatsApp from an unknown number on my personal phone.”
“The person told me that if I didn’t lose my match, they would target my family.”
Udvardy said: “They even sent photos of my family members and a picture of a gun. It was honestly very scary to receive something like this.
“I immediately contacted the WTA supervisor and sent him screenshots. I also informed my family, who immediately got in touch with the local consulate.
“The WTA supervisor told me that similar threats had been received by other players.
“They suspect a possible leak of personal information from the database and indicate that an investigation is underway.”
A Hungarian tennis player has revealed a series of alarming WhatsApp messages
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Her family subsequently contacted the Hungarian consulate in Turkey, which responded by dispatching three police officers to accompany her during Friday’s match against Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina.
Authorities in Hungary simultaneously provided protection at her parents’ and grandmother’s homes.
Despite the security measures, Udvardy lost the contest 7-6 (7-3) 7-5 to her Ukrainian opponent.
Following the match, she filed an official police report with Turkish authorities.
Panna Udvardy said the threats arrived on her personal phone from an unknown number late on Thursday evening
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INSTAGRAM/panna_udvardy
Udvardy said: “I want to say something clearly: this is not normal. Even as athletes or public figures, it’s not acceptable to receive threats against our families, especially not on our private phone numbers and alongside disturbing images.”
Just days earlier, Italian competitor Lucrezia Stefanini reported receiving strikingly similar threats whilst competing in qualifying at Indian Wells.
Stefanini explained in a video posted from the BNP Paribas Open: “I received a WhatsApp message in which I was threatened over winning yesterday’s match. They threatened me and my family and named my parents, the place where I was born, and they sent me a photo of a gun.”
The world number 138 ultimately fell 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 to Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva despite refusing to be intimidated.
The WTA is understood to be aware of multiple affected players and is currently investigating whether personal data may have been compromised through a breach of their database system.
Panna Udvardy is currently ranked 95th in the world
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Angelo Binaghi, president of the Italian Tennis and Padel Federation, described the incidents as “intolerable” and warned perpetrators they had crossed into criminal territory.
Binaghi said: “Sending images of weapons, knowledge of personal information and intimidation toward an athlete marks an increase of disturbing quality that doesn’t have anything to do with sports. Whoever thinks they can condition a match through fear should know that they have entered criminal territory.”
The federation chief called for an immediate legal response and advocated for a substantially reinforced international framework to safeguard athletes.
A joint report from the WTA and International Tennis Federation documented approximately 8,000 online posts and comments classified as abusive, violent or threatening throughout 2024.
The governing bodies are now exploring artificial intelligence solutions to intercept threatening communications directed at players.
