Cirstea: "What if Mattek-Sands' injury had been a heart attack?"

Sorana Cirstea was in badly affected after witnessing first hand the terrible knee injury suffered by Bethanie Mattek-Sands in their second round match at Wimbledon on Thursday. The American player was running to the net when her knee gave way. She was left screaming for help and in severe pain on the ground, with the position of the knee-cap suggestive of a patellar tendon rupture. 

Cirstea questions time taken to attend to Mattek-Sands

Cirstea was visibly upset and said her friend's knee was "out... and in a very weird position". "I freaked out. I have never seen such an injury before, the knee was really in a bad position. It was like something you see only in the movies," said Cirstea. "I tried to comfort her but I panicked. I felt useless. All she kept saying was 'Sorana, help me, help me. I wish I could have done more. You wouldn't wish that on your worst enemy."

“I was screaming at the umpire. I told them to bring a stretcher because everyone froze, nobody reacted,” said Cirstea who said only she, her physio and Justin Mattek-Sands initially raced to the player’s assistance. “She went into shock and it took so long for the medical team to arrive. It felt like forever. What if it was a heart attack? You should look at the video and time how long it took. I was there 10 to 15 minutes and the stretcher had still not arrived.”

However, the All England Club insisted in a statement: "The first response to Court 17 was within one minute, by a qualified ambulance technician".

Mattek-Sands undergoing further tests

Bethanie Mattek-Sands was undergoing more tests on her right knee on Friday following her sickening injury at Wimbledon. "Bethanie is currently undergoing more scans this morning and we should know more within the next few hours," said the WTA Tour in a statement. "Bethanie of course thanks everyone for their kind wishes and messages of support."