Corentin Moutet gets annoyed with the referee and loses in the first round against Sebastian Korda

TENNIS – He distinguished himself even more by his volcanic temperament than by his consistency on the circuit. The Frenchman Corentin Moutet’s journey at the US Open 2024 turned into a fiasco in his first round against the American Sebastian Korda. The tennis player, ranked 69th in the world, lost his match in three sets (7-6 (7/3), 6-1, 6-0), but also his calm. Not because of his opponent… but because of the referee.

However, everything seemed to be going well for the 25-year-old. Despite losing the first set in tie-breakCorentin Moutet showed good intentions on the court against the 16th player in the world. Except that the match quickly changed at the start of the second set, precisely at 3-1 for Sebastian Korda, while the latter was preparing to serve at 40-40. The French player then turned to the referee to ask him what he was doing with the tournament phone to his ear, as you can see below.

The referee, visibly annoyed, replied curtly: “I do my job, you do yours. ” A response that inflamed Corentin Moutet’s anger. Visibly frustrated, he approached the official’s chair to express his discontent: “Why are you yelling at me when it’s your fault?” he said to emphasize that the referee had disturbed his concentration.

Corentin Moutet loses his calm

The game was interrupted for several minutes, before the American managed to win the game, saving several break points in the process. Corentin Moutet, still annoyed, continued to argue with the referee during the break, collecting a penalty point for “unsportsmanlike conduct” after pointing out the official’s attitude: “You’re crazy, you’re 100% wrong! And you’re yelling at me. He’s about to serve, you’re on the phone, what am I supposed to do?”he insisted, before asking for the supervisor to intervene.

The incident seemed to have completely unsettled the French player, who was never able to regain his composure or his level of play. The third set turned into a formality for Korda, who won 6-0. At the end of the match, Corentin Moutet even refused to shake the referee’s hand.

On social media, there have been many reactions from Internet users shocked by Corentin Moutet’s attitude.

At a press conference, Moutet expressed his frustration with the situation: “The referees use their power to dominate the players, he was on the phone several times while my opponent was ready to serve (…) They don’t even have to announce the balls anymore, they don’t have much to do anymore, they can at least watch the game.” He also admitted that the incident took him out of his game and accepted some responsibility for the defeat: “It took me out of my game, it’s my fault.”

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