‘Lots of drama’ becomes the norm at tense US Open
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Russia's Daniil Medvedev's racket after his first round match against France's Benjamin Bonzi.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
NEW YORK – Unseasonably mild conditions have done nothing to cool tempers inside the 2025 US Open, as frustrations boil over and nerves fray on courts across Flushing Meadows.
Spats at the net and tears on the bench have appeared more frequent in New York this time, when players reach the home stretch of a busy season grasping at their last chance to claim a Grand Slam title this year.
“Lots of drama,” said American fourth seed Jessica Pegula. “Everyone is tense. It’s the last Slam of the season. Your last chance to go deep at a Slam for a while.
“I think people maybe just get stressed out, and you’re out there competing and fighting and trying to win. I think it just gets emotional.”
Former champion Daniil Medvedev incurred a US$42,500 (S$54,540) fine for his antics during a loss to Benjamin Bonzi at the start of the week, when he launched a tirade against the umpire and whipped up jeering fans.
Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko levelled a series of insults at Taylor Townsend during a post-match encounter after the American prevailed in their second-round meeting on Aug 27.
“She told me I had no class, I have no education,” said Townsend.
Ostapenko later apologised, stating that her English is not good and that her anger stemmed from Townsend’s failure to acknowledge she benefited from a net cord.
“English is not my native language, so when I said education, I was speaking only about what I believe as tennis etiquette, but I understand how the words I used could have offended many people beyond the tennis court,” she posted on Instagram.
“I appreciate the support as I continue to learn and grow as a person and a player.”
A day later, Stefanos Tsitsipas used the customary post-match handshake as an opportunity to lambast his second-round conqueror Daniel Altmaier for deploying an underarm serve.
“I don’t know if it’s just the part of the season where everyone is, like, tired and irritated or something,” said two-time former champion Naomi Osaka.
“For me, I think New York brings out my best behaviour, so I don’t know what everyone else is doing.”
For some players, trying to cope with the stress and exhaustion can bring emotions to the surface.
Coco Gauff, the 2023 champion, struggled to contain her nerves in a second-round encounter with Donna Vekic on Aug 28, as she sat shaking and crying on her bench mid-match before winning 7-6 (7-5), 6-2.
Asked to explain the amount of drama at the tournament this year, the American said that the Grand Slam brought a bigger spotlight to increasingly common issues in the sport.
“With some of the drama, I feel like it happens frequently on tour but because it’s here it gets more social media clicks,” said Gauff, who enjoyed a far more routine third-round win over Magdalena Frech on Aug 30.
“For us players, it’s just another week on tour.” REUTERS
