Valentin Royer let his anger explode this Tuesday at Saint-Brieuc. The 23-year-old French player, ranked 179th in the world, was opposed to the Spaniard Bernabe Zapata Miralles during the first round of Challenger 75. Visibly irritated by the refereeing decisions and upset by the progress of the match – he was trailing 6-1, 3-6, 3-1 -, Royer verbally attacked the referee. After the meeting, he apologized via an Instagram story.
Video – Valentin Royer at Roland-Garros this year
During the match, after being broken in the third set (1-0, 1-1), the Frenchman responded to the noisy expressions of his opponent, who kept repeating “And” et “Let’s go“https://www.tennisactu.net/.”Shut up, shut up! He just talks!“, the Habs got annoyed at the start of the set, before letting out new signs of annoyance after an error on a forehand which landed out of bounds.
The cries of Zapata Miralles irritated Valentin Royer
During the change of sides, Valentin Royer complained to the referee about the repeated exclamations of his opponent, particularly after the Frenchman’s mistakes. “He talks all the time, I have nothing against him, but you have to intervene. I make a mistake, okay, he just has to keep playing“, he calmly explained to the official. But the tension peaked after the break which allowed Zapata Miralles to take a 3-1 advantage in the last round. “You are a disgrace to the sport. A shame“, he blurted out as he passed by the referee’s chair. “You don’t intervene? This is insane, you are so incompetent“, he added. Despite the virulence of his remarks, the referee did not sanction Royer, but the latter ended up losing after 1h46 of play (6-1, 3-6, 6-2).
“I acted immaturely.”
A few minutes after the meeting, the 179th in the world made a point of publicly apologizing in a message posted on Instagram: “I would like to apologize to the chair umpire for the inappropriate comments I made, even indirectly. Everyone can make mistakes, and as a professional tennis player, it is my responsibility to behave appropriately on court and maintain calm before uttering such words. I also want to apologize to everyone who supported me today, as well as those who have supported me throughout the year. My behavior on court was unbecoming, and I acted immaturely. I showed a very bad attitude, which in no way sets an example, neither for the younger generations nor for myself. This behavior is not like me and does not reflect the person I am. I hope you understand“, he wrote. The 23-year-old Frenchman faces a fine for these comments.
