“Due to unsportsmanlike conduct at the conclusion of his doubles match on Tuesday night, Alexander Zverev has been withdrawn from the tournament in Acapulco.”tweeted the governing body of men’s tennis.
Annoyed by the performance of a referee, Zverev hit his racket against the judge’s chair at the end of the match who lost together with the Brazilian Marcelo Melo against the duo formed by the British Lloyd Glasspool and the Finnish Harri Heliovaara 6-2, 4-6 and 10-6.
The second blow was about to hit the judge’s right foot. Zverev sat for a few moments on his bench and got up again to address the referee and yell at him and hit his chair with his racket again.
“There are no excuses” for his behavior and the way in which he claimed the referee is “unacceptable”, Zverev, 24, apologized on his Instagram account a few hours after his expulsion from the tournament, in which he defended the title he won in 2021.
“It is difficult to put into words how sorry I am for my behavior during and after yesterday’s doubles match.”wrote ‘Sascha’. “I apologized privately to the chair umpire that my outburst towards him was wrong and unacceptable.”.
Zverev Wednesday had to play his second round match against compatriot individual Peter Gojowczykwhich after the decision of the ATP advances directly to the quarterfinals.
The German, third in the world ranking, had won Tuesday morning in the first round against the American Jenson Brooksby 3-6, 7-6 (12/10) and 6-2 in a match that ended at 04:54 local time, on later in the history of professional tennis, after a duration of three hours and 19 minutes of play.
In addition to his exclusion from the Acapulco tournament, Zverev could receive additional sanctions under the ATP disciplinary code.
Zverev said he would reflect on his behavior.
“As you know, I leave everything on the pitch”wrote the German. “I left too much yesterday. I’m going to take the next few days to reflect on my actions and how I can make sure it doesn’t happen again.”.
His behavior quickly became a topic of conversation in the tennis world.
After losing to Jannik Sinner at the Dubai Open on Wednesday, Briton and former world number one Andy Murray was asked about Zverev’s behaviour.
“It wasn’t good. It was dangerous, reckless”Murray replied.
“Obviously I understand that a lot of players, athletes in a lot of sports, can get very frustrated. Certainly, myself, I haven’t always performed the way I’d like on the court. I certainly don’t claim to be an angel.”.
However, Murray continued, “obviously you can’t be pointing your tennis racket at the umpire multiple times.”
Zverev is no stranger to controversy
The ATP is still investigating him over allegations of violence against a former girlfriend. He denies the accusation.
In June 2020, he was criticized for partying in a bar, when he had promised to isolate himself for two weeks, after competing in a tournament organized by Novak Djokovic with the presence of the public, against medical advice on the covid-pandemic. 19. Several players, including Djokovic, have contracted the disease.
Source: Ambito
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