Criticized by Karen Khachanov following his victory in the semi-final at the Masters 1000 in Paris, Ugo Humbert “personally contacted” the Russian to apologize and claims to have learned his lesson.
Ugo Humbert makes his mea culpa. During his semi-final of the Masters 1000 in Paris won against Karen Khachanov, the Frenchman was very demonstrative with each point scored, even though his opponent was weakened. The latter had also criticized a not very fair play attitude of the 14th player in the world. “I told him to stay a little calm and show respect. That's not the way to behave. I'm always fair play, I will congratulate him if he behaves like a normal person,” had confided Khachanov after the match.
The “controversy” having quickly escalated, the 26-year-old took the time to look back on what happened. “After the physiotherapist's intervention, I perceived it as cramps, being on the verge of having them myself after more than 2h30 of intense match. I lost other matches this year in similar circumstances and this time I remained focused on the objective I am sorry to see that this has been misunderstood and worse, described as a lack of fair play on my part,” Humbert wrote in a story on Instagram.
“Great respect” for Khachanov
The Frenchman also assures that he contacted his opponent “personally” to apologize. “I have great respect for Karen and for all the opponents I have had to meet so far. This will serve as a lesson for me to act better in the future,” he added, thanking his supporters . Messin also promised to spend “a little time” at home in Metz, despite his withdrawal from a tournament in which he is the defending champion.
After a promising 2024 season with two titles (Marseille, Dubai) and a first Masters 1000 final during the last one at Bercy, Humbert got closer to the best ranking of his career (13th) since he is ranked 14th in the world this year. week. Enough to go on vacation with a smile.
