After losing to Mirra Andreeva in the quarterfinal of the French Open, Aryna Sabalenka, the champion of the Australian Open, has said that she had a “difficult time” due to a stomach ailment.

The world No. 2 postponed her Paris post-match press conference but nevertheless spoke briefly with the Roland Garros journalists.

The Belarussian star was visibly in distress as she was defeated 7-6, 4-6, 4-6 by her 17-year-old opponent, who became the youngest Grand Slam semi-finalist since a 16-year-old Martina Hingis in 1997.

But Sabalenka had to stop and receive medical attention after winning a first-set tiebreak and was constantly clutching her stomach, before receiving painkillers during the match.

The French Open confirmed in a statement that Sabalenka would not be interacting with the on-site press, citing “medical reasons” as the reason for the decision. Sabalenka was scheduled to conduct a post-match news conference and share her thoughts on the match.

The statement in full read: “Aryna Sabalenka will be unable to attend her post-match press conference due to medical reasons and is currently with the tournament medical team.”

However, Sabalenka caught up and gave an explanation for her court issues and delay several hours later. “I had a difficult time out there physically today,” she stated. It’s been difficult because I’ve been really sick for the past several days with a stomach ailment. Yes, it has been a few days. I tried my hardest to control it.”