World No. 3 Alexander Zverev has been ruled out of the Mexican Open, the ATP 500 tournament in Acapulco after physically assaulting the chair umpire after his doubles match on Wednesday. Zverev could face further sanctions from the ATP for his “unsportsmanlike conduct”.
Alexander Zverev, who worked in doubles with Brazilian Marcelo Melo, nearly hit the chair umpire with his racquet after winning the doubles 6-2, 4-6 (! 0-6) against British-Finnish pairing Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara had lost.
Zverev, in a fit of rage, repeatedly slammed the referee’s chair and yelled expletives at the chair referee after shaking hands with his opponents. He got up from his seat on the sidelines and went for it again to smash his bat in the referee’s chair.
“Due to unsportsmanlike behavior at the end of his doubles match on Tuesday evening, Alexander Zverev was withdrawn from the tournament in Acapulco,” said the ATP in a statement.
No pretendo discutir con aficionados nuevos al tenis, cada quién tiene en su experience su percepción del deporte, pero lo de Alexander Zverev es grotesco e unacceptable, espero que tengan huevos y haya sanción. Si esto lo hace alguien más, lo suspenden.pic.twitter.com/7OkmXUy6wH
— (@Riverettii) February 23, 2022
Zverev completed a first round win over American Jenson Brooksby in the men’s singles event of the Mexican Open tournament at 4.55am local time on Tuesday, the last-ever finish for a professional tennis match.
Last year’s winner Zverev was set to meet fellow German Peter Gojowczyk, who now gets a free-kick to advance to the quarters.
In 2019, after an initial $113,000 fine, Australian Nick Kyrgios was handed a 16-week suspended sentence and an additional $25,000 fine by the ATP for “aggravating conduct” following an internal investigation.
ATP also launched an internal investigation into allegations of domestic violence against Zverev by his ex-girlfriend Olga Sharypova in October last year.
