Coco Gauff lashes out to French Open: “It’s almost ridiculous!”
Tennis' American superstar Coco Gauff has called for the sport to introduce a video system review after being reduced to tears at the French Open against Iga Swiatek.
The controversial moment happened when Gauff missed a return on Swiatek's serve at 2-1 up in the second set, as the line judge called it out, but the decision was reversed by chair umpire Aurelie Tourte.
The umpire disagreed that the call affected Gauff's shot, but the American superstar was adamant the call was made during her backswing.
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According to Sky Sports, Gauff said: "He called it, and then I hit it. I'm a thousand percent sure. If he called it before I hit it, I stop my reaction. I didn't even finish my follow-through."
Gauff became extremely emotional by the ordeal but managed to wipe her tears away and break Swiatek's serve. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, losing 6-2, 6-4, and missing out on the chance to return to another Grand Slam final.
According to Eurosport, Gauff said it was "Almost ridiculous" that tennis is one of the few sports without video refereeing. She added, "You can call for a supervisor, but there isn't much they can do from that standpoint, so I think as a sport, we have to evolve."
"I know the US Open brought some of it last year. I know we used it in our doubles at one point. There are so many decisions that are made, and it sucks as a player to go back or online, and you see that you were completely right."
The US Open became the first Grand Slam event to introduce video refereeing in 2023 and generated positive feedback at the ATP events it was used in.
The American isn't the first player to call for video refereeing in tennis, with Britain's Cameron Norrie saying video replays should be used after getting away with a double bounce shot in the second round of the French Open last year.
Should tennis introduce video refereeing like other major sports, or will it cause more controversy like it has in football?
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