Alexander Zverev was disqualified from the Mexican Open for striking the umpire chair with his racket multiple times following doubles play in Acapulco, Mexico.
Zverev, teamed with Brazil’s Marcelo Melo in men’s doubles, nearly struck umpire Alessandro Germani and repeatedly smacked Germani’s elevated chair on the side of the court at the conclusion of a 6-2, 4-6, 10-6 loss to Lloyd Glasspool (England) and Harri Heliovaara (Finland).
Enraged by a line call in the final set, Germany’s Zverev approached the umpire’s chair shouting expletives and the incident escalated from there.
The third-ranked singles player was booed heavily before taking his seat courtside. The 24-year-old German had been given a code violation during the match for his reaction to the line call.
“Due to unsportsmanlike conduct at the conclusion of his doubles match on Tuesday night, Alexander Zverev has been withdrawn from the tournament in Acapulco,” the ATP said in a statement Wednesday.
After a brief pause, Zverev returned to strike the chair again as Germani curled his feet to avoid being struck.
Zverev later said he regretted his behavior in a lengthy statement posted to Instagram. Instead of a second-round singles match with Germany’s Peter Gojowczyk, Zverev is out of the tournament entirely. Gojowczyk advances to the quarterfinals via walkover.
“It just should not have happened and there is no excuse. I would also like to apologize to my fans, the tournament, and the sport that I love,” Zverev said after stating he was disappointed in himself. “As you know, I leave everything on the court. Yesterday, I left too much. I am going to take the coming days to reflect on my actions and how I can ensure that it will not happen again. I am sorry for letting you down.”
His mangled racket wound up in the hands of a child in the front row. The ATP could again sanction Zverev, who has been fined multiple times for outbursts.
–Field Level Media
