Tearful Gauff dumped out of Olympics after umpire row as Nadal returns
PARIS — Tearful Coco Gauff crashed out of the Paris Olympics at the hands of Donna Vekic on Tuesday after a heated row with the umpire as Rafael Nadal prepared to return to the baking courts.
With temperatures rocketing into the mid-30s Celsius at Roland Garros, officials activated a heat protocol, allowing a 10-minute break between the second and third sets.
In the first match on Court Philippe-Chatrier, Vekic shocked Gauff 7-6 (9/7), 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals, but the match was overshadowed by a lengthy row between the US Open champion and the chair umpire.
Gauff, the flag-bearer for the United States at the Olympic opening ceremony alongside NBA star LeBron James, made a fast start but squandered three set points before her Croatian opponent won the first-set tie-break.
The pair swapped breaks early in the second set, but the match came to a standstill at the end of the sixth game as an emotional Gauff pleaded her case with the umpire.
At 30-40, Vekic hit a return deep to Gauff’s forehand, which the American mishit into the net.
Vekic’s shot was called out but the call was overruled by the chair umpire and the point was awarded to the Croat, giving her the break. Gauff argued her shot was compromised by the initial call.
“I have to advocate for myself all the time,” a weeping Gauff, 20, said on court. “I’m getting cheated in this game. You guys are not fair to me.”
Later, a more composed Gauff called for a video review system at Roland Garros to match those in place at other Grand Slam venues.
“I can’t say I would have won the match if I would have won that point but, for sure, being not a break, whereas maybe replaying that point can make a big difference in that game,” she said.
Vekic, ranked 21, briefly lost her composure, slipping to 0-40 on her own serve before recovering to hold, and she broke again to seal victory.
The Wimbledon semifinalist said the row over the line call was a “tricky situation”.
“After that, the crowd, it was not so easy,” she said. “I lost my concentration for a couple of points, but I’m happy that I managed to come back in that game because it was an important game.”
Germany’s defending men’s champion Alexander Zverev coasted into the third round with a 6-3, 7-5 win over 39th-ranked Czech Tomas Machac.
In the women’s draw, three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber of Germany progressed to the quarter-finals along with US eighth seed Danielle Collins and China’s Zheng Qinwen.
Women’s world number one Iga Swiatek targets a 24th straight win on the clay courts of Paris against China’s Wang Xiyu in the evening session.
‘Nadalacaraz’
Nadal, a 14-time French Open champion, was swept off court by old rival Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the pair’s 60th meeting on Monday.
The 38-year-old, immortalised in a statue at Roland Garros, has been plagued by injuries in recent years and is now 161st in the world.
Nadal said after his painful defeat to Djokovic that he would make a decision on his future after the Olympics.
But the Spaniard, who won singles gold at the 2008 Beijing Games and doubles gold in Rio in 2016, can still collect a medal in the doubles alongside current French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz.
