“Someone gave me the finger” Corentin Moutet slams hostile Miami Open fans after defeat to Alejandro Tabilo
World No.76 Corentin Moutet took to social media to reveal why he lost his cool during his Miami Open second-round match.
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Corentin Moutet (Image via X/We Are Tennis)
Corentin Moutet was furious due to the crowd’s behavior during his second-round match at the Miami Open. He locked horns with Alejandro Tabilo who came from a set down to secure a 5-7, 6-3, 7-5 win over the Frenchman.
Inside Court 5, Moutet was sitting on his bench and turned backward to glare at a fan who was shouting expletives at him. When the fan saw Moutet staring at him, he shouted, “Go to play, play, play!“
From the first point, the public was hostile: deliberate noise between my services, whistles, insults, provocative gestures…Those who watched the match will be able to testify that I did not respond for an hour and a half, content to play and get back to the score. But the more the match progressed, the more aggressive the atmosphere became.
Corentin Moutet tweeted
Frustration got the better of Moutet and he got up to ask that fan, “What did you say?” multiple times. As a response, the fan ordered him to play. Moutet called for the supervisor.
After two hours of play, without any intervention from the referee to calm the crowd, I reacted by raising my arms three times to encourage the crowd to make even more noise. At that point, someone gave me the finger. I felt that this exceeded the limits of what an athlete should accept on a field. So I asked the referee to remove this person before resuming play.
Corentin Moutet added
Moutet said the referee, instead of removing the spectator from the stands, decided to penalize him. When the supervisor arrived, he explained to him what happened. The supervisor left and came back only to say that the fan told him it was Moutet who showed that fan the middle finger.
Moutet was penalized for the second time and this gave an advantage to Tabilo. The 25-year-old said he has been at the receiving end of criticism due to this incident and it has affected him deeply.
Check out his post here:
— Corentin Moutet (@moutet99) March 23, 2025
Corentin Moutet was involved in a heated altercation with Alexander Bublik
Over a week ago, Corentin Moutet‘s altercation with Alexander Bublik at the Phoenix Challenger made a lot of headlines. They met in the quarterfinals where the Kazakh ace came from a set down to win the match.
At one point during the match, Moutet said he wasn’t ready when Bublik was serving. Bublik responded, “I don’t give a sh*t“. Right after the match, Bublik challenged Moutet for a fight off-court.
Moutet laughed and turned away, and the supervisor intervened to stop the conflict. On social media then, Moutet took a brutal dig at Bublik and said “People are different in front of the camera and behind the camera“.
After beating Moutet, Bublik knocked out first-seed Nuno Borges in the semifinals. He fought hard in the final but teen sensation Joao Fonseca emerged victorious in straight sets.
Corentin Moutet’s season so far
Corentin Moutet is 5-5 this season on the ATP Tour and hasn’t yet won a title. He started his campaign at the Australian Open and made it to the third round for the first time.
Moutet was then defeated in the Argentina Open fourth round and in his campaign opener at the Rio Open. His run at the Chile Open wasn’t different as there too, he suffered a first-round exit.
In the first event of the Sunshine Double, Moutet progressed to the second round, before losing to Alexander Bublik at the Phoenix Challenger and to Alejandro Tabilo in Miami. Moutet, ranked No.76 in the rankings, has not yet won an ATP title in his career.
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