Paris, May 27 (AP) Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep said she had a panic attack while leading her second-round match that she eventually lost at the French Open.

The 2018 Roland Garros winner said she “lost it” and couldn't regain focus while playing 19-year-old Qinwen Zheng, who won 2-6, 6-2, 6-1 at Court Simonne-Mathieu.

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“I had a break in the second set, but then something happened. I just lost it," the 30-year-old Romanian said in her post-match press conference.

“It was just a panic attack. It happened. I didn't know how to handle it because I don't have it often.”

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Halep, the 2019 Wimbledon champion, had already amassed 20 wins this season and had beaten 74th-ranked Zheng in January.

Halep said she likely put too much pressure on herself.

“It's something normal that everybody has. I will be better next time, for sure. I don't have these things so it was new for me," she said.

Halep said she was assured by doctors that she's OK physically.

“After the match was pretty tough. But now, I'm good. I'm recovered, and I will learn from this episode.” (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)