Tennis Player Blames Female Umpire for French Open Loss — Suggests She Didn’t Have ‘Strength’ to Handle Rowdy Spectators

Pauline FIGUET / SPP/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)

Paraguayan tennis player Daniel Vallejo said after his French Open loss Thursday that a woman should not have officiated his match.

Vallejo faced 17-year-old Moise Kouame from France in the second round of the tournament. The marathon match, played in sweltering heat, lasted nearly five hours and ended with a Kouame victory. With the win, Kouame became the youngest player to advance to the third round of the French Open since 1988.

After the match, Vallejo made it clear he did not approve of the way the match was handled. The 22-year-old specifically took issue with the way umpire Ana Carvalho dealt with the French crowd that was overwhelmingly in favor of Kouame.

A report from the tennis publication Clay continued:

“It has to be refereed by a man, because it’s a very demanding crowd and you need a lot of strength to go against the crowd,” insisted the Paraguayan.

“The crowd was very out of line, but I understand they’re supporting their compatriot. It’s quite an intense crowd and that’s why I was prepared; I already knew it would be like that and, to be honest, it didn’t harm me, but rather strengthened him.”

Asked to elaborate further, Vallejo said the teenager repeatedly dropped to the ground and stalled between play. At times, he continued, the crowd was also given a “full minute” to cheer.

“In a match where the physical aspect matters so much, if you give a player a lot of time, he’s obviously going to take advantage of it,” Vallejo told Clay. “The truth is, it’s also difficult for a referee to manage this situation.”

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