Russian tennis player Vera Zvonareva denied entry in Poland

Russian tennis player Vera Zvonareva has not been allowed to enter Poland to take part in the upcoming Warsaw Open tournament, the Polish Interior Ministry said on Saturday.

"Yesterday, on July 21, border guards stopped a Russian tennis player from entering Poland. The Russian was on the list of undesirable individuals in Poland and was barred from entering Poland for security reasons," said a statement from the ministry as quoted by TASS.

The player had flown to Warsaw from Belgrade with a visa issued by France and after arriving from Serbia was in the transit zone of Warsaw's Chopin Airport, said the ministry. On Saturday at 12:00 local time (1: pm Moscoe time), Vera had taken the Warsaw-Podgorica flight

The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Warsaw Open will be played from July 24-30. Earlier, the Sports and Tourism ministry of Poland had claimed that it has no legal instruments for admission of tennis players from Russia and Belarus to tournments in Poland.

WTA also took to Twitter to issue a statement on the matter.

WTA statement on Vera Zvonareva’s entry into Poland

The WTA is aware of the situation involving Vera Zvonareva in Warsaw.

The safety and well-being of all players is a top priority of the WTA.

Vera has departed Poland and we will be evaluating the issue further with the event.

Vera had turned pro in 2000 and the 38-year-old has won 12 singles titles in her career. Currently ranked at 655, she hit her peak in 2010, reaching number two.

She has not won a singles Grand Slam title, having finished as runners-up in Wimbledon and US Open. She has clinched Australian and US Open titles in women's doubles.

This year, she has a win-loss record of three wins and seven losses. Her overall career win-loss record is 587 wins and 312 losses.

Notably, this comes a day after Russian president Vladimir Putin warned after Poland reinforced its defences at the border with Belarus, where fighters from the Wagner mercenary force, Russia's military company, moved last month.