Umpires called the police after Ioana Andrada Surdeanu, a Romanian junior player, was slapped by her father, who is also her coach, after she crashed out of a girls' tournament in Israel. Miss Surdeanu, who had reached the quarter final of the International Tennis Federation Tournament, screamed when her father hit her as 'punishment' for losing against the favourite to win the competition, witnesses said.
Defending Lucian Surdeanu, her father, the tennis player said it was normal for him to 'punish' her after matches, usually by taking her phone.
She said: '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.'
Despite needing treatment from a doctor to stem the blood pouring from her nose, Miss Surdeanu, ranked 249th in the world, tearfully defended her father.
'At the police station they didn't let me see him, like he was dangerous and I had to stay away from him.
'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. But so what? I deserved it.
'It was my fault because I've yelled and said some bad words to him. I was irresponsible after all the sacrifices he made for me. I admit that I was scared in that moment he hit me, but I know he regrets what he did and he loves me as much as I love him.
'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.'
Mr Surdeanu was given a £237 fine and has reportedly returned home to Romania.
1) Richard Williams, father of Serena and Venus, admitted that he brought up his daughters in the notorious neighbourhood of Compton, California, to give them 'a fighter's mentality'.
He took them to the courts when they were just four years old, later realising that he should have waited until they were at least six.
He says the motto he drilled into them from an early age was: ‘You got to be rough, you’ve got to be tough and you’ve got to be strong.'
2) John Tomic, the father and coach of Bernard Tomic, headbutted his son's hitting partner, breaking the player's nose after a row on a training court in Madrid.
Despite this, he said: 'I don't feel guilty, I didn't do anything wrong.'
3) Damir Dokic, father of Jelena Dokic, bizarrely threatened to assassinate the Australian ambassador to Serbia and was ejected from Wimbledon in 2000 for breaking a journalist's camera.
The father of the tennis star also hit the headlines after saying he would kill himself if his daughter was a lesbian.
4) Jim Pierce, father of retired player Mary Pierce, shouted at her daughter to 'kill the b****' during a tournament.
In 1993, Ms Pierce obtained a restraining order from her father, who had verbally abused her.
His outbursts were so bad that he was eventually banned from Women's Tennis Association matches.
5) Croatian player Mirjana Lucic said she left her home with her mother and four siblings to escape her abusive father Marinko.
He told the Telegraph: 'I never used excessive force, and if I did give her the occasional slap, it was because of her behaviour; I did what I believed what was best for the child.'
Culled
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