WATCH: Tommy Paul hits the chair umpire on his head during warm-up, rushes to apologise immediately

Once again, a tennis player accidentally hits the chair umpire.

WATCH: Tommy Paul hits the chair umpire on his head during warm-up, rushes to apologise immediately

Tommy Paul (Image via Tennis TV and Twitter)

Umpiring can be a dangerous job at times. Fergus Murphy learned during the Cincinnati Open when American player Tommy Paul accidentally smacked the chair umpire on the head during a warm-up serve during his match against Carlos Alcaraz.

Paul was practicing his serve when things didn’t turn out the way he had planned. He missed the serve, causing the ball to shoot out like a bullet from a pistol, striking the umpire at a dangerous speed. 

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The match between Paul and Alcaraz was truly captivating. Alcaraz managed to overcome his third-round rival with a score of 7-6 (8/6), 6-7 (7/0), 6-3, avenging his defeat from the previous week and securing a spot in the quarterfinals.

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Their head-to-head record currently stands at 2-1 in favor of Tommy. Alcaraz’s performance was exceptional, marked by his impressive resilience as he saved breakpoints four times during the initial two sets. Although he stumbled on three match points in the second set, his overall play remained remarkable.

Paul also displayed remarkable effort, although he struggled to convert the crucial break point, ultimately falling short. His journey across the past few tournaments has been nothing short of remarkable, culminating in his current position as the world number 13. With his outstanding performances, he is emerging as a potential beacon of hope for US tennis.

The sound of the ball hitting the umpire resonated loudly, causing a moment of worry for those on the court. Quickly, Paul hurried to the umpire to check on him and apologize. Despite being visibly affected, the umpire downplayed the incident, saying, “It’s okay. It’s okay. I just… Maybe I… It’s good I didn’t see it. That’s okay.”

After the brief interruption, the match resumed, and Alcaraz successfully progressed to the next round.

Read more: Ons Jabeur seeking Rafael Nadal’s inspiration to bounce back at the US Open after losing three Grand Slam finals in 1 year

Will Carlos Alcaraz move to the next round?

Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz (Image via tennis infinity)

Carlos Alcaraz secures a spot in the quarterfinals following his victory over Paul in their match. His upcoming opponent in the quarterfinals will be Max Purcel. Purcel’s noteworthy journey in the tournament began from the qualifiers, and he has advanced to this stage by triumphing over opponents with substantial experience, such as Stan Wawrinka, Casper Ruud, and Lloyd Harris.

In contrast, Alcaraz recently defeated Novak Djokovic to win the Wimbledon and is currently in excellent form. He will want to keep up this form leading up to the US Open. Last week, he suffered an early exit from the Canadian Open, but he is now completely prepared to bring the title home. Given that this will be their first-ever clash, it will be an interesting match to watch.

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