WATCH: Furious Andrey Rublev gets involved in a heated exchange with the official at the Ultimate Tennis Showdown

Andrey Rublev's claim of using his bonus card denied by the match officials in the UTS.

WATCH: Furious Andrey Rublev gets involved in a heated exchange with the official at the Ultimate Tennis Showdown

Andrey Rublev in a heated exchange with the official (Via X)

Andrey Rublev and Holger Rune were all set for the first semi-finals of the Ultimate Tennis Showdown. The match gained a lot of attention from the fans as the two young talented players were contesting for a place in the finals of the UTS. However, as the game started on Sunday the match turned into a stage of chaos. The match officials and even the founder of the tournament Patrick Mouratoglou had to be involved in the situation.

The format of the show is a bit different and unique. The game is played in four quarters. Each quarter has a fixed duration of eight minutes. The player who scores the most points in this span of eight minutes wins the round. Similarly, on Sunday as the first semifinals began, Holger Rune made a fiery start to the match winning the first round. It was an early statement from Rune to the Russian. The second round also went to the wire, and it was all-square at 11-11 when the clock timed out.

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This is where the chaos and the problems start. After the official timed out the clock, Rublev claimed that he used his bonus card which means that the player using the bonus card would add three points to his tally if he won the next exchange. Rublev was left furious with the clock being timed out and called the tournament a “sh*t show.”

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Andrey Rublev calls the UTS a “sh*t-show”

However, Rublev claimed that he used his bonus card to the officials. The request from Rublev didn’t work as the score was 11-11. Moreover, Rublev was held a time violation by the match officials for refusing to continue the play. This further infuriated the Russian and he got involved in a heated exchange with the match officials.

Andrey Rublev lashes out at the match officials during the first semis of the UTS.
Andrey Rublev (image via: Tennis Majors)

Even Holger Rune approaches the match officials’ table to have a chat with the umpire. Rublev then tried to take advantage of this and attempted to serve when the Dane was in discussion with the match officials. This first semi-finals of the Ultimate Tennis Showdown is proving to be a roller-coaster ride for the fans.

The format of the UTS has been previously questioned by various critics and players. Holger Rune who is playing in the semifinals against Rune has also said earlier that he doesn’t like the format of the tournament.

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