"The door opened, I was freaking out" - Vekic on stressful helicopter ride to Guadalajara

Wednesday, 19 October 2022 at 16:30

Updated at Friday, 06 December 2024 at 00:59

byJordan Reynolds

Donna Vekic made a winning start at the Guadalajara Open but getting there involved a pretty stressful situation for the Croatian.

Vekic was unable to attend the player party in Guadalajara, which featured stars like Bianca Andreescu, Sloane Stephens, and Eugenie Bouchard because she competed in the final of the San Diego Open on Monday.

The 26-year-old's superb run to the final in San Diego as a qualifier included triumphs against Maria Sakkari, Karolina Pliskova, Aryna Sabalenka, and an epic deciding set tiebreak win against Danielle Collins in the semifinal.

Vekic pushed Iga Swiatek to three sets in the final, but the world No. 1 managed to get over the line. Many expected the Croatian to withdraw from the Guadalajara Open. However, she chose not to.

Instead, Vekic took a helicopter to arrive in time for her opening-round match, which was played the day after the final in San Diego. She defeated Laura Pigossi in straight sets after reaching Guadalajara via the helicopter.

After beating Pigossi, Vekic revealed that the door opened mid-flight after she did not close it properly. Fortunately, no one was harmed, and the pilot managed to calm the situation before anything harmful occurred.

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"It was great, except the door opened mid-flight. It was actually my fault because when we were sitting at the beginning, it was so hot, so I opened the door a little bit to have some air. I guess I didn't close it properly"

"10 minutes into the flight, the door opened. I was freaking out. The guys were freaking out in the back because I was sitting in the front. The pilot was like, 'No pasa nada. No pasa nada."

"Honestly, I'm really happy and grateful to be here. The tournament, they gave me a wild card. Without it, I wouldn't even be able to play. So I'm just enjoying my time here, happy to play a couple more matches before the season is over"