Andy Roddick has slammed the rules that allowed Lorenzo Musetti to continue playing his quarter-final against Frances Tiafoe.
Musetti struck a line judge after kicking a ball, something many players and onlookers believed would result in a disqualification. But the Italian went on to beat Tiafoe and will now face Carlos Alcaraz for a place in the final.
In his press conference, Tiafoe described the situation as “comical” and hinted that Musetti should have been defaulted.
TNT Sports pundit Roddick ranted: “We can’t equate Frances telling the truth to Frances saying he was the better player on the day and deserves to be on the semis on merit. But, yeah, on a technicality sure I can see it.
“Everyone is going to argue about this but we are arguing about an agreement. Do we want consistency with this rule? Do we want it to be black and white? Or do we want the grey area that leads to conversation?
“Which is basically if you do something dumb and it hurts or affects or hits an umpire you’re gone. That’s it.
“Then as a players if you go over the line it’s on you. The responsibility should not lie with the umpire. I should be ‘oh I messed up’.
“Novak slapping a ball and hitting someone in the throat is obviously way more dramatic than hitting a ball or I have said that someone fires the ball into the stands and it could hit someone, so don’t we value the fans as much as the umpire?
“The conversation never ends and it’s always kind of a stupid one. If you do something and it’s out of anger and it hits someone that it’s not supposed to, either never default anyone or default everyone. This middle ground is a dumb thing, it’s useless.”
Content Source: www.express.co.uk