Tamara Korpatsch defended her decision to skip the customary handshake with Wang Xinyu after defeating the 32nd seed in a tense second-round match at the French Open, saying later she resented being portrayed as an unfair player over a line call.
Tensions arose late in the opening set of Korpatsch’s 6-2 2-6 6-3 win when Wang struck a shot she believed had landed inside the baseline, only for her opponent to point to a ball mark outside the court.
The disagreement escalated when Wang crossed the net to inspect the mark on Korpatsch’s side, drawing a code violation from chair umpire Aurelie Tourte for unsportsmanlike conduct, and sparking tension that lingered through the match.
“It was a really long ball from her, and I saw it out. I don’t know if the line umpire called it out or not, but there were two ball marks, actually,” Korpatsch said.
“One was an old one and the other one was the new one. Both of them were out, so it doesn’t matter. I didn’t know which one was the right one but the chair umpire came down and showed the mark, and it was out.
“Also on the TV, they showed the Hawk-Eye and it was like eight millimetres out. She came on my side, because she didn’t believe it… At the end, we didn’t have a handshake because she told me she’s not okay with that, with the ball marks.
“I can’t say I’ll gift her the point. I’m a bit surprised, because we have a good relationship, we’re not enemies. I didn’t offer her my hand because that’s not fair for me. She was unfair to come on my side, and I’m not an unfair player.”
Unlike the other three grand slams, the French Open does not rely on electronic line calling, as officials can inspect traces left by the ball on the clay to help them make decisions, though there remains room for human error.
Korpatsch reiterated her frustration at the perception of the incident and defended her conduct.
“I think she said something like she thought I’m not a fair player or something like that, but I don’t know how. We have one of the best chair umpires on the court, and I don’t know how to cheat, honestly,” Korpatsch added.
“There are cameras on court and they can check everything. For me, it would be embarrassing to cheat like that. I’m honest, that when I was running, I thought the ball is out, and was like ‘okay, which one is it?’ I didn’t know which mark. For that, we have the umpire.”
Through to the Roland Garros third round for the first time, Korpatsch plays seventh seed Elina Svitolina next on Friday.
Reuters
