Kamil Majchrzak has been reunited with the young boy who was left devastated when a man snatched a souvenir cap away from him in the aftermath of the Pole’s victory at the US Open.
The 29-year-old, who pulled off the biggest win of his career by beating No 9 seed Karen Khachanov in a marathon five-set thriller on Thursday, was filmed removing his cap and trying to hand it to a child, named Brock, in the crowd on Court 11.
But in ugly scenes that quickly went viral, a man standing next to the boy reached out, grabbed the cap and stuffed it into his bag — leaving the youngster looking crestfallen and asking ‘what are you doing?’ as Majchrzak walked away, unaware of what had just happened.
The clip sparked fury online with fans branding the man ‘selfish’ and ‘a jerk’ for stealing a moment that should have belonged to a child.
Majchrzak moved to put things right on Friday, taking to Instagram to appeal for help in finding the boy.
‘After the match I didn’t record that my cap didn’t get to the boy,’ he wrote. ‘Thanks to @asicstennis I’ve got enough caps, so I’m prepared for that. Hey guys, could you help me find the kid from my match. If it’s you (or your parents see this), please send me a DM.’
Kamil Majchrzak has been reunited with the young boy who had a souvenir cap snatched away
The pair shook hands before Majchrzak appeared to be handing over some merchandise
They have now been reunited at Flushing Meadows and a video posted on Majchrzak’s Instagram account showed shaking hands and talking.
He looked to have a bag of merchandise with him that he handed over to the young boy before they posed for a picture together.
Majchrzak’s caption read: ‘Hello World, Together with Brock we wish you a great day!’
Despite the happy resolution, there has been a rising backlash against the hat grabber.
A supposed defense of the hat grabber’s actions appeared online from someone posting on website Go Work claiming to be the CEO’s legal representative.
The lengthy post on LinkedIn, purporting to be by a Swedish legal firm’s partner, insisted that the filmed ‘actions were neither unlawful nor reprehensible’.
The online comment added: ‘On the contrary – they can be understood as an educational gesture and a form of teaching for a young person.
‘First of all, the cap was not of such value that one could speak of any “loss”.
‘It was an everyday item, which ultimately was handed over to the child. Thus, the child was not deprived of the item but received it.
Kamil Majchrzak was signing tried to give his cap to a young boy, but a man snatched it away
The disappointed young boy was seen asking ‘what are you doing?’ after the man took the cap
‘Secondly, the very act of temporarily taking the cap and then giving it back can be interpreted as a lesson in respect for gifted items.
‘It was therefore not about “taking away”, but about highlighting the importance of looking after what one is given.
‘In this sense, the incident takes on the character of symbolic upbringing through experience – the child, instead of passively receiving an item, was engaged in a situation that taught greater awareness and gratitude.
‘For this reason, portraying the entire event in negative terms is not only incorrect but also unfair.’
The statement led many to believe the writer could, in fact, be the hat stealer.
Yet the post was later deleted, with the legal official telling people he had been falsely misrepresented.
A post on the quoted lawyer’s LinkedIn page later said: ‘In connection with the publicly appearing statements about the incident with the cap at the US Open, I would like to inform you: I do NOT have an account on GoWork, and the opinions published there under my name are NOT my opinions.
‘I have taken legal action to block this content.’
Majchrzak issued a plea for his followers to help him identify the boy – and it quickly worked
The heart-warming resolution capped a dramatic 48 hours for Majchrzak, whose on-court exploits have already made headlines in New York.
On Thursday he produced a performance of extraordinary grit to topple Khachanov 2-6, 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-5, 7-6(5) in four and a half hours — saving five match points along the way.
It marked his first win over a Top 10 opponent and matched his best-ever run at the US Open, where he is now into the third round.
His reward is a third-round meeting with Swiss qualifier Leandro Riedi on Saturday.
He is ranked 435 in the world but also coming off a giant-killing win after upsetting No 19 seed Francisco Cerundolo. Victory would see Majchrzak reach the last 16 of a Grand Slam for the first time.
