Tennis-Tiafoe says lack of serious sanction for Musetti ball abuse ‘comical’

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By Shrivathsa Sridhar

PARIS (Reuters) -Beaten American Frances Tiafoe said it was comical that there was no serious punishment for Lorenzo Musetti and tennis rules lacked consistency after the Italian kicked a ball that struck a French Open line official in his quarter-final victory.

The incident occurred in the second set of Tuesday’s clash when Musetti was given balls to serve. He kicked one with his left leg and inadvertently hit a line judge, who barely flinched even though she was hit on her upper body.

Musetti apologised and was immediately given a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct by the chair umpire, but not defaulted, and the incident drew comparisons to another involving Novak Djokovic at the 2020 U.S. Open.

A petulant swipe at the ball after having his serve broken brought an end to Djokovic’s campaign in New York five years ago after he struck a line judge in the throat.

“Yeah, I mean, obviously he (Musetti) did that and nothing happened,” Tiafoe, who earlier looked surprised and pointed out the incident to the chair umpire, told reporters after his 6-2 4-6 7-5 6-2 defeat.

“I think that’s comical, but it is what it is. Nothing happened, so there’s nothing really to talk about. Obviously it’s not consistent, so it is what it is.”

The rules of the sport state that if a player abuses a ball, they can be sanctioned at first instance with a warning. If the abuse is violent or dangerous, it can lead to further sanctions including default.

Musetti said it was an “unlucky coincidence” and he was afraid as he did not want to harm anyone.

“So I immediately went to the line umpire, and I of course said sorry, I apologised to everyone,” Musetti added.

“It was right to have a warning, but I think the umpire saw that there was no intention about that, and that’s why probably just let me continue my game.”

(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in ParisEditing by Toby Davis)