(CNN) -- Your 21st birthday is supposed to be a joyous celebration, a marking of a move into a new exciting period of life, but for Ayumi Morita it was anything but.
As the cream of the world's tennis players gathered in the Californian desert for a top-level men's and women's tournament at Indian Wells, disaster struck on the other side of the world.
A magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck Japan, causing a tsunami and wreaking devastation upon the island nation that has left more than 13,000 people dead and another 14,000 missing.
March 11 was also the day when Morita turned 21, and she was far away from her mother Hiromi, father Tomohiro and brother Kazuhiro.
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"It was a big shock for me. I'm so touched by the kindness shown by the whole world, everyone is helping our country. I'm so impressed," she told CNN.
"After the earthquake the phone system was down, so it was difficult to get hold of my family. I was worried until I could finally hear from my mum that they were okay.
"But it was so hard to hear the news they were reporting. It's been very heartbreaking to watch the news and see how my country suffers. I hope that things will start improving soon."
Born in the city of Ota, 50 miles northwest of the capital Tokyo, Morita has slowly worked her way up the world rankings since making her WTA Tour debut in 2005.
Now 53rd in the listings, she is facing the same problem as many of her compatriot sports stars -- how to keep focused in the wake of such a tragedy.
"When I heard the news it was a very tough moment for me," Morita said. "My mum said in Japan it's a very difficult situation, it's been very tough times, but she told me I should focus on my tennis -- and that's the only thing I can do."
They were fine compared to other people, who had family separated and people dead
--Kimiko Date-Krumm on her family
Morita is also trying to give something back to Japan. As well as wearing the Red Cross badge during her matches "to send a message of my appreciation" she has also donated items for the online charity auction set up by Japan's top men's player Kei Nishikori.
Veteran Japanese player Kimiko Date-Krumm has also contributed memorabilia, while Tokyo's WTA tournament has set up another online auction to raise funds for the quake victims.
The timing of the disaster has meant it has been difficult for the Japanese players to find time to return home to see loved ones.
The Indian Wells event was followed by another two-week tournament in Miami, again featuring the sport's top names, and now the tennis circuit has swung almost immediately to Europe for the start of the clay-court season.
Date-Krumm, enjoying her second career since ending her 12-year retirement in 2008, heard the shock news about the quake when she was at the players' pre-tournament party at Indian Wells.
"I went back to my room and switched on my TV and checked my email. My manager sent an email from Tokyo saying we had a big earthquake and then I saw on the TV the tsunami had already started. It was so fast, I was so surprised and so shocked," she told CNN.
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The 40-year-old's father Juichi passed away in 2007, but her mother Masako and siblings Ryusuke and Junko were in Japan.
"I tried to call my mother and she was fine, and my brother sent an email to me and he was stuck at his company, he could not go back home but his family was fine," said Date-Krumm, who has bases in Tokyo and Europe with her husband, German racing driver Michael Krumm.
"Then my sister, she was picking up her two boys and going back home -- she didn't have electricity so they had to put on lots of clothes. But the next day they were fine compared to other people, who had family separated and people dead."
Date-Krumm last year became the oldest player to beat a top-10 ranked woman and fell just short of becoming oldest to win a WTA event when she lost in the final in Osaka.
The former world No. 4, now ranked 56th as Japan's second-highest player behind Morita, is determined to keep playing the game she so enjoys.
"Tennis is a fantastic sport and I'm still fit. I don't know how long I can continue but I love sports so it's possible I can continue," she said.
"I never think about the rankings, I just enjoy tennis. It's a big challenge for me. Of course I don't want to lose, I don't like to lose. It's more important that life is a challenge."
CNN's Candy Reid and Heidi Berger contributed to this report.
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