Iga Swiatek has spoken out after being harassed during a practice session at the recent Miami Open. The world No. 2 was swiftly provided with extra security at the tournament. And she has now revealed that she received online “threats”.

Back in action at this week’s Porsche Tennis Grand Prix after her disappointing quarter-final loss in Florida, Swiatek praised the women’s tour for taking action to protect her.

After a tough time in Miami, Swiatek is back on her favourite surface, the clay. The Pole suffered a shock defeat to teenage wildcard and then-world No. 140 Alexandra Eala last month and has not played since.

The five-time Grand Slam champion also had a difficult experience away from the match court at the Miami Open, as she was harassed during an on-site training session.

A man approached the 23-year-old and recorded himself shouting abuse in her direction.

He was claimed to have said: “Hey Iga, call your mother. Iga, when are you going to make up with your mother? Daria runs with water, like a trained dog,” a reference to the tennis star’s psychologist, Daria Abramowicz.

At the time, a member of Swiatek’s team claimed she had been given extra security after they reported the incident to the WTA and tournament organisers.

The world No. 2 has now confirmed that the women’s tour stepped in to “protect” her.

“Well, I wouldn’t call it a threat because it wasn’t that hard. I mean, for sure there was a fan that wanted to disrupt my rhythm,” Swiatek said.

“I try to focus on the fans that are giving me support. But obviously when you hear something like that, you want to react. I think WTA helped us, helped me, to feel protected.”

Swiatek also explained that, while she didn’t feel threatened during the practice court incident, she received concerning messages online that prompted her team to take action.

She continued: “The thing that I heard wasn’t a threat, but I think there were some threats on the Internet.

“So yeah, WTA helped me react quickly and made me feel secure. I’m happy there is someone overlooking us and helping us to react in these kinds of situations. Yeah, that’s what happened.

“I’m happy that I have my team also around that helps me in these kinds of situations.”

Swiatek will turn her attention to the indoor clay-court event in Stuttgart, where she is a two-time former champion. The second seed has a bye and will open her campaign against either Donna Vekic or Jana Fett.