‘Coaching or Not Coaching’ – Fabio Fognini Says Stefanos Tsitsipas’ Father Is a Problem During Matches; Implores ATP to Take Action

We have witnessed some exhilarating tennis action during the hard-court season this year. Apart from the off-court drama, top tennis players in the world have treated tennis fans with some eye-catching tennis action. The action has now shifted onto the clay courts. Top tennis players are battling it out at the Monte-Carlo Masters. Yesterday, an incident occurred when Fabio Fognini was up against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round.

The match-up between Fognini and Tsitsipas was always going to be exciting, given Fognini’s experience on clay and Tsitsipas’ form this year. However, Tsitsipas won the match in straight sets, in an hour and 10 minutes. An incident marred his victory over Fognini at the tournament.

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Fabio Fognini unhappy with Stefanos Tsitsipas’ box

The 34-year-old was not happy with the constant noises from Tsitsipas’ box. Subsequently, he made his emotions felt to the chair umpire. However, no action was taken against Tsitsipas as the Greece national went on to win his second-round encounter. After the match, Fognini took to Instagram and posted a story, saying, “Coaching or not coaching… That’s a big problem. Right [ATP Tour]?” 

After prevailing past Fognini 6-3, 6-0, Tsitsipas said, “I was able to really perform close to my best and deliver the result that I did. Nevertheless, I was still able to generate some good pace and create some good angles which gave me a lot of points.”

Moreover, it proved to be a great outing for Tsitsipas, especially after the shock defeats suffered at the Sunshine Double. The third seed dominated the match right from the word go. Tsitsipas broke Fognini’s serve in the second game of the opening set. However, the Italian gave glimpses of a comeback when he broke Tsitsipas’ serve in the fifth game. But Tsitsipas broke his opponent’s serve again in the eighth game of the first set. Further, he held his serve to eventually win the opening set 6-3.

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The second set proved to be a one-sided affair, as Tsitsipas inflicted a ‘bagel’ on Fognini. Tsitsipas will be proud of his display against an experienced opponent. He will face the winner of the match between Lorenzo Sonego and Laslo Djere in the third round.