Olympic golden medalist Alexander Zverev has openly questioned Stefanos Tsitsipas' motives for leaving the court, telling reporters, "it's happening each match."
Andy Murray was near fuming aft his five-set nonaccomplishment to the Greek prima and said helium had "lost respect" for him aft helium took agelong bath breaks astatine pivotal moments. Muray utilized the connection "cheating" connected court. The 34-year-old Brit suggested it "can't beryllium a co-incidence" that the breaks were taken astatine times wherever the momentum was with Murray.
The incidental sparked statement crossed the tourney astir however agelong players truly request during bath breaks and whether the rules should destruct immoderate attempts of gamesmanship from competitors.
After his 6-4, 7-5, 6-2 archetypal circular triumph implicit American Sam Querrey, Zverev teed disconnected connected Tsitsipas, saying helium had experienced akin tactics conscionable implicit a week ago.
"It's happening each match. It's not normal," said Zverev.
"It happened to maine successful the French Open, to Novak (Djokovic) successful the finals astatine the French Open. You know, I deliberation successful Hamburg against (Filip) Krajinovic helium was complaining, against maine successful Cincinnati was ridiculous, and present present again. I deliberation players are catching up connected that."
Zverev was successful a akin presumption against the Greek subordinate successful the semi-finals of the Cincinnati lead-in tournament. After winning the archetypal acceptable 6-4, Tsitsipas took his container into the bath with him, presumably to alteration into adust clothes. However, that acceptable disconnected alarm bells for Zverev who accused Tsitsipas of taking his mobile telephone successful arsenic good and texting with his father/coach Apostolos, which is successful breach of ATP rules.
Tsitsipas denied that he's ever done thing similar that erstwhile asked aft his triumph implicit Murray, but Zverev was having nary of it pursuing his triumph this greeting AEST.
"He's gone for 10-plus minutes. His dada is texting connected the phone. He comes out, and each of a abrupt his maneuver wholly changed," Zverev said. "It's not conscionable maine but everybody saw it. The full crippled program changes.
"Either it's a precise magical spot helium goes to oregon determination is connection there. But I besides don't privation to disrespect him. He is simply a large player. He is No.3 successful the satellite for a reason. He's winning tournaments and playing unthinkable tennis this twelvemonth for a reason, truthful it's not lone that. But I bash believe, and Andy said it, arsenic well, determination is immoderate level of respect that everybody needs to person betwixt players.
"I consciousness like, yeah, sometimes – oregon helium mightiness conscionable spell to the toilet. We don't cognize that. That's besides possible. But it conscionable happens excessively often, I would say."
Murray couldn't fto it spell and doubled down connected his disapproval of Tsitsipas connected societal media, telling his followers: "Fact of the day. It takes Stefanos Tsitipas doubly arsenic agelong to spell the bath arsenic it takes Jeff Bezos (sic) to alert into space. Interesting."
Even though Tsitsipas' behaviour has raised the ire of rivals, the No.3 effect has immoderate support.
American tennis subordinate Reilly Opelka defended Tsitsipas and said helium "highly doubts" the prima is being coached during bath breaks astatine important moments.
Opelka, the No.22-seeded male, who swept past Soon-woo Kwon successful the archetypal round, admitted helium has nary transportation to the Greek prima but felt the request to support him due to the fact that the "tennis media sucks".
"I deliberation it's ridiculous. I recognize it's getting property due to the fact that tennis is lame and tennis media sucks and they're terrible," Opelka said during his post-match property conference.
"It's blistery and humid, and for the media, the property that person ne'er stepped ft connected a tennis tribunal successful their life, person ne'er been successful the environment, couldn't past 30 minutes retired successful this humidity, successful this heat. It's physical, our athletics is. My shoes are dripping, they're leaking sweat.
"To alteration oregon to spell after, you know, 2 sets we're drinking, we're hydrating a lot, we person to usage the bathroom.
"To alteration socks, shoes, my inserts successful my shoes, shorts, shirts, everything, the full 9 yards, hat, it takes five, six minutes.
"I don't cognize Tsitsipas, I don't cognize his situation, I uncertainty he's getting coached. I highly uncertainty it. Today I couldn't adjacent instrumentality my container successful to change. I'm like, guys, my apparel and shoes are successful here. You tin travel successful and basal with maine if you want."
Article I, Section W, Paragraph 4 of the 2021 Grand Slam regularisation publication limits women (who play best-of-three-sets) to 1 travel disconnected tribunal and men (best-of-five) to 2 trips "for a tenable clip for a toilet break, a alteration of attire break, oregon both."
Murray is among those who person advocated for immoderate benignant of regularisation power by stating however overmuch clip players should have. He called for harsher consequences than the elemental informing that Tsitsipas received from the seat umpire for a clip violation, erstwhile some players were deed hard by conditions.
Even 1 of the game's legends questioned however open-ended the rules are and said determination is country for players to interruption them.
"It's truthful vague. Another vague regularisation successful tennis. And I deliberation that's what Andy was complaining about," 18-time large champion Chris Evert said during ESPN's telecast Tuesday.
"Let maine archer you, 8 to 10 minutes, that gives the subordinate clip to beryllium with himself, to fig retired what helium needs to do, to reset if helium needs to, to scope into his container and get a telephone call. Or scope into his container and work a text. It opens the doorway to a batch of things that possibly aren't just successful tennis."
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