SAN DIEGO — In the unsettling darkness, Russian attack drones flew past the 12th floor window of the home of Dayana Yastremska. The family scrambled, dogs in tow, to an underground parking garage.

Odesa, a vibrant port nestled alongside the Black Sea in southwest Ukraine, a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its contributions to cinema, literature and the arts, had been thrust into the hellish fire of war.

Upon reaching the garage, the world quaked.

"After just one minute, something exploded," Yastremska said of the terrifying night in February 2022. "It seemed pretty close. I was sitting on a chair and go, 'Oh, (crap).' It was crazy. I don't wish anybody to experience that."

Yastremska is the 33rd-ranked player in the world, according to the Women's Tennis Association. She's also a mature-beyond-years 23, balancing life as an elite athlete with the jumbled emotions of her home being locked in deadly conflict.

The Cymbiotika San Diego Open at the Barnes Tennis Center provides another chance at connection, another chance to tell her story, a platform to ensure the war, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday has claimed roughly 31,000 soldiers according to the New York Times, does not become a global afterthought.

Yastremska, ranked No. 33 in the world, beat American Caroline Dolehide 6-4, 5-7, 6-1 on Tuesday at the Barnes Tennis Center.

Yastremska sometimes creates a heart with her hands after wins as a subtle yet meaningful connection. She writes messages to her country — "Glory to Ukraine" at the Australian Open — with those camera lens pens used in tennis.

After a runner up finish at the Lyon Open in March 2022, she donated her purse of nearly $16,000 to the Ukrainian Foundation. She collaborated with a Latvian rapper and Czech singer to release the single "Hearts" this month as a tribute to the strength of the children living in peril daily.

"I don't know if I'm inspiring the people," said Yastremska, parroting the question. "But for sure, I'm trying to bring my best on the court to show in my own way that I also try to fight. I also try to talk a lot about it.

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