“Totally Unacceptable!”- Patrick McEnroe lashes out at Alexander Zverev for his violent conduct in Acapulco
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Alexander Zverev and Patrick McEnroe
Alexander Zverev was suspended from the ongoing ATP Acapulco for ‘unsportsmanlike conduct’ during his doubles match with Marcelo Melo in the opening round. Zverev and Melo lost their opening round match against Lloyd Glasppol and Harri Heliovara 2-6, 6-4, 6-10.
Zverev/Melo lost the first set, but bounced back to win the second set and force a decider. In the 10-point tie-break, while Zverev/Melo were trailing 6-8, he disagreed with a call made by the line umpire. The German was furious about the call and lost his temper, he lashed out at the umpire for not overruling the call at least reviewing it. He even went on an expletive-laden rant, for which he received a code violation.
The British-Finn pair won the next point with an ace to wrap up the match. After the match, during the customary handshake, Zverev repeatedly hit the umpire’s chair with his racquet in frustration and just missed hitting the umpire by a few inches. As a result, he was kicked out of the tournament and was withdrawn from the single’s draw.
Patrick McEnroe calls for longer suspension on Zverev
Tennis fans and pundits were furious with the German for his blatant act of intimidation and immediately called for his suspension. American tennis star Patrick McEnroe also expressed his displeasure over the controversy. He opined that Zverev’s actions after the match were ‘Totally unacceptable’ and said stricter sanctions should be imposed on the German.
As of now, Zverev has only been suspended from the tournament and no fine has been imposed on the German. He was also kicked out of the single’s draw as well, in which he was the defending champion. A lengthy suspension might be imposed on Zverev as his angry outburst might cause serious repercussions.
In a similar case in 2019, Nick Kyrgios was suspended for 16 weeks for verbally abusing the umpire during his match at the Cincinnati Masters. But other notable disqualifications mostly include players hitting the ball at officials unintentionally, the most famous one being Novak Djokovic’s suspension from the US Open. But Zverev might receive a lengthier suspension and heftier fine for his actions, as it was intentional and potentially violent.
Also read: ‘Arrogant and disgraceful’ Alexander Zverev smashes racquet on umpire’s chair after losing the match
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T Rushitha
(360 Articles Published)