Wrath and madness: Frances Tiafoe smashes the racket on match point!

The American tennis player did not accept the chair umpire's decision and unleashed his anger


by LORENZO CIOTTI

Wrath and madness: Frances Tiafoe smashes the racket on match point!
© Srdjan Stevanovic / Stringer Getty Images Sport

Frances Tiafoe victim of a fit of madness and anger in the Davis Cup! The American tennis player lost control, destroying his racket, in the match against Tallon Griekspoor, protagonists of the match valid for the Davis Cup match between the USA and the Netherlands.

In a crucial phase of the match, with the score 5-3 in the decisive tie-break, the Dutchman serves on the line, but the referee calls the serve out. Consequent challenge request from Griekspoor which turns out to be right, with a clearly good ball and a point awarded to the Dutch tennis player who is worth the match point.

At this point, however, Tiafoe protests to the referee for the decision made, given that the call had actually arrived before the American tennis player's response. The chair umpire remains adamant and does not allow the point to be repeated, unleashing the wrath of the 25-year-old American, who destroys the racket, violently slamming it to the ground several times.

Penalty point and seventh point in the tiebreak for Griekspoor. Game, match, match, to the amazement of the Dutchman himself and the crowd present, with Tiafoe throwing another racket at the net, greeting his opponent and leaving the court annoyed.

Below the video shared by the @Dogukandilber X account:

The match between USA and Netherlands

The Dutchman's victory with a score of 6-3 6-7(7) 7-6(3) is worth the second point for his national team, after Botic Van De Zandschulp's surprising success over Tommy Paul in straight sets.

The doubles success of the Krajicek - Ram pair was useless for the purposes of the challenge, but important for qualification in the event of finishing on equal points.
With the success against the United States, the Netherlands has almost closed the qualification, while the Americans will be called upon to beat Finland on the last day of matches to secure a place in the quarter-finals of the competition, scheduled from 21 to 24 November.

Frances Tiafoe