Tennis ace Mikael Ymer usually makes headlines in sports. Now, however, he is causing a stir with his mind – in a negative sense.
Lyon – Since victory and defeat are usually close together in tennis, the fuse of the players is often short. It is not uncommon for the thug to have to hold out when the actors give free rein to their anger. This was also the case recently with Mikael Ymer. The Swedish professional completely freaked out after a lost rally at the ATP tournament in Lyon and smashed his racket. But that's not all: he let off steam in the referee's chair – with drastic consequences.
| Mikael Ymer: | |
|---|---|
| Born: | 9 September 1998 in Skövde (Sweden) |
| Professional since: | 2015 |
| Greatest success: | Victory in doubles at the ATP tournament in Stockholm 2016 (with his brother Elias) |
| World Ranking: | 53. (As of May 22, 2023) |
Tennis player Ymer takes out his anger on the referee's chair and smashes his racket
At the ATP tournament in Lyon shortly before the start of the French Open, the Swede lost his composure shortly after losing a game when the score was 6: 5 after sets. While his opponent Arthur Fils cheered the game win, which also meant a break, to thunderous applause from the spectators, Ymer blew a fuse.
He angrily trudged in the direction of the chair umpire Rogerio Santos and made short work of it. With two hard blows, he dismantled his bat and hammered a hole in the chair paneling on top of that. He then threw the remaining handle of his racket impassively onto the court and sat down on his bench. The French crowd commented on the 24-year-old's angry performance with whistles and boos.
Mikael Ymer burst his collar at the ATP tournament in Lyon. © Imago / PanoramiC / Screenshot: TennisTV/Twitter
Before freaking out: heated discussion between tennis ace Ymer and the chair umpire
The reason for Ymer's outburst of anger was a rally that had taken place shortly before when the score was 5:5 and 30:30 in the first set. His opponent Fils had probably manoeuvred the ball out of bounds, but there was no out-call. After that, the match continued and the somewhat irritated Ymer also hit the opponent's line with his next goal – point for Fils.
The Swede then argued with the chair referee Santos, who had insisted that he had seen "the ball bounce on the line" and did not want to overrule the linesmen's decision. Subsequently, the world number 53. Santos was asked several times in vain to come down from his seat and show him the spot on the line where the ball had landed. Ymer had already been stunned: "I've never seen a referee say he wouldn't come down to check the spot."
The background to the outburst of tennis star Ymer in the video:
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Swedish tennis pro Ymer disqualified after tantrum at tournament in Lyon
From then on, however, the referee had continued to refuse to comply with the Swede's request and suddenly insisted that he had looked to the other side of the pitch at the decisive moment, so that the match had resumed.
However, this did not last long. After Ymer's tantrum a short time later, head referee Stéphane Crétois disqualified the Swede. "They don't give me a choice," said the person in charge, regretting the decision. Now he is likely to face further consequences. Alexander Zverev was fined and banned for eight months after a similar freak out in February 2022 at the tournament in Acapulco.
Apart from the frenzied Sweden, sand specialist Rafael Nadal, who announced the end of his career, recently made headlines in the tennis cosmos. (wuc)