Ukrainian flag draped around tennis court at Cincinnati

The size of the Ukrainian flag that a fan draped around her during a game at the Cincinnati Open on Monday was the reason she was asked to remove it from the grounds, tournament officials told Reuters.

One of the players complained to WTA chair umpire Morgane Lara about the fan during a qualifying match between Russian players Anna Kalinskaya and Anastasia Potapova on Sunday.

The video of the incident posted online showed Lara come out of her chair to speak to the fan who left the court.

The head of security of the tournament, who told her the flag was above regulation size, approached the fan.

According to the Western and Southern Open's bag policy, flags or banners larger than 18 x 18 inches 46 x 46 cm are prohibited, a spokesman for the tournament said in an email.

The patron was asked to remove the flag from the grounds and, after doing so, was allowed to remain at the tournament.

Any questions about the chair umpire should be directed to the WTA TourWTA Tour. Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, calling it a military operation aimed at pre-emptively safeguarding its security against NATO expansion.

Ukraine and the West accuse Moscow of being involved in an unprovoked imperial war of aggression.

Wimbledon banned Russian and Belarussian tennis players from the grass court major this year.

The US Open - starting on August 29, will allow players from those countries to participate in a tournament-long campaign to raise awareness and humanitarian aid for Ukraine, with a goal of raising US 2 million $2.84 million in relief, the United States Tennis Association USTA said last week.