A US Open photographer had his accreditation revoked after he walked on court at match point, sparking chaos in the crowd, a six-minute delay and an epic five-set defeat for a furious Daniil Medvedev.
Medvedev, the No13 seed from Russia, is no stranger to on-court histrionics, but his protests to the umpire and the subsequent uproar in the crowd, created a remarkable atmosphere during a 6-3, 7-5, 6-7 (7-5), 0-6, 6-4 first-round defeat that ended in the early hours of Monday morning.
The 2021 US Open champion was facing match point in the third set at the Louis Armstrong Stadium when his opponent, the Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi, fired his first serve into the net. As Bonzi prepared to take his second serve, a photographer briefly ran on to the court before ducking behind a TV cameraman.
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The chair umpire, Greg Allensworth, ruled that Bonzi could take his first serve again, which threw Medvedev into a fit of rage and the New York crowd soon followed him. After a delay of more than six minutes, Medvedev won the third set and added the fourth, but the comeback stalled as Bonzi completed victory almost two hours after the flashpoint.
“It’s kind of crazy, this match,” Bonzi said. “For me, it’s like my best victory ever.”
The 29-year-old, who has never reached the fourth round of a grand-slam singles event, blamed Medvedev for making it a tense match, saying he believed the Russian’s behaviour crossed a line.
“I mean, the rule is the rule,” he added. “The guy went on the court between two serves. It’s not my call to say first serve. And I think, yes, Daniil started it, and he put oil on the fire.”
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Allensworth told the photographer to get off the court. He was later escorted out of the stadium by security and a United States Tennis Association statement said: “His credential has been revoked for the 2025 US Open.”
The umpire announced that Bonzi would get another first serve because of the delay, which is common in tennis. Medvedev then approached the chair to complain about the decision. “He wants to go home, guys,” Medvedev shouted. “He doesn’t like to be here. He gets paid by the match, not by the hour.”
The Russian said after the match that he didn’t believe the interference from the photographer was long enough to warrant restarting the point. “I was not upset with the photographer,” he said. “I was upset with the decision. The delay from the photographer was probably four seconds and a half. I’m not sure it’s enough for a [repeat of the first] serve.”
Medvedev also shouted, “What did Reilly Opelka say? What did Reilly Opelka say?” as he backed away from Allensworth’s chair. Opelka, the American world No67, was penalised by the ATP Tour in February after calling Allensworth the worst umpire on tour. He wouldn’t elaborate on that part of the exchange during his press conference.
Medvedev incites the crowd’s complaints after a confrontation with umpire Allensworth
ADAM HUNGER/AP
“I’m getting a big enough fine [already], so if I speak I’m in big trouble, so I’m not going to speak,” he said. “Everyone knows what I talked about when I said Reilly — Reilly got fined big-time for this, so I’m going to get a big fine, too.”
Medvedev blew kisses to fans and kept encouraging the loud boos, which lasted so long that he then tried to get fans to quiet down so Bonzi could serve. When Bonzi finally did, he missed the first serve and then lost the point, and Medvedev won the game.
Bonzi appeared ready to serve at one point before some in the crowd started whistling. “Every time I went on the line to serve and every time I did that, everyone was booing,” he said. “I felt I didn’t do anything bad in the match to receive this treatment, and I didn’t want to serve in those conditions.”
The photographer is escorted out
REUTERS/
Bonzi cups his ear to the booing crowd after sealing the win in response to the earlier flashpoint
EDUARDO MUNOZ/REUTERS
It was reminiscent of Medvedev’s 2019 match on the same court against Feliciano López, when fans booed him for his antics and he later taunted the crowd in his post-match interview, saying the jeers gave him energy.
Medvedev had snatched the towel from a ballboy and was given a code violation by umpire Damien Dumusois. Medvedev then threw his racket in the direction of Dumusois and later flashed his middle finger next to his forehead as he walked past the umpires chair, actions that led to him being fined $9,000 for that match.
After the defeat by Bonzi he sat in his chair for a few minutes and repeatedly smashed his racket before eventually departing. Bonzi will face Marcos Giron, of the US, in the second round.