The clay-court season is here, and so are the classic arguments about line calls. As the dust settles—literally and figuratively—players, umpires, and fans are once again caught in the debate over Electronic Line Calling (ELC) on clay. While the ATP has made ELC mandatory across all courts, the WTA is still taking baby steps. The Charleston Open made headlines as the first WTA clay tournament to fully implement Hawk-Eye. Madrid and Rome are expected to follow. But not every tournament is hopping on the tech train just yet. Take the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, for instance. No ELC there. And because of that, we got a heated moment during Aryna Sabalenka’s quarterfinal match.

Sabalenka’s Stuttgart campaign started a little “awkward,” according to her. The top seed got a first-round bye and then a lucky break when Anastasia Potapova withdrew in the next round. According to the laws in the area, Good Friday meant no matches could be played. So, finally, on court on Saturday, the Belarusian took on her friend and former doubles partner, Elise Mertens. A slow start saw her lose serve early, but she bounced back fast, winning nine of the next ten games. In just an hour, she walked off with a solid 6-4, 6-1 win.

But it wasn’t the scoreline that stole the spotlight. The real drama began when a disputed line call sparked a tense exchange with chair umpire Miriam Bley. Sabalenka didn’t agree with the call. She asked for the mark to be checked and wasn’t satisfied with the response. Then came the twist—she pulled out her phone and took a photo of the mark on the clay. Yes, you read that right!

After the match, the World No.1 hinted that the umpire didn’t appreciate the move. “I felt the referee was pi**ed by the picture I took. When I gave her a handshake, that was a very interesting look & strong handshake,” she said in her on-court interview.

It was an odd, charged moment. But this isn’t the first time players and umpires have clashed over calls. Remember the 2024 Cincinnati Open where Jack Draper beat Félix Auger-Aliassime in a tense three-setter? The match ended in a fiery argument. Auger-Aliassime claimed Draper’s match-winning volley had bounced before contact. The umpire, Greg Allensworth, didn’t see a replay, so he gave Draper the point. The supervisor was called in, but with no video evidence, the call stood. Auger-Aliassime was furious. “It’s going to go everywhere now, and it’s going to look ridiculous,” he told the umpire.

Earlier this year at the Australian Open, another big moment sparked debate. During a quarterfinal between Iga Swiatek and Emma Navarro, Swiatek won a key point despite what looked like a clear double bounce. No review, no reversal. The Pole won the match 6-1, 6-2, but the point became the center of discussion.

Back in Stuttgart, Sabalenka’s clash with the umpire didn’t derail her performance. She’s now into the semifinals and edging closer to what could be a long-awaited title.

Aryna Sabalenka is one step closer to her fourth final at the Stuttgart Open

Sabalenka has certainly been playing like someone on a mission this season. She has won 23 of 27 matches and has bagged titles in Brisbane and Miami, but the near-misses still haunt her. She lost to Madison Keys and Mirra Andreeva in the Australian Open and the Indian Wells finals, respectively.

In Stuttgart, Sabalenka has reached the final thrice before—losing to Ashleigh Barty in 2021 and to Iga Swiatek in both 2022 and 2023. However, the top seed is ready to finally end the drought,. “I lost three finals against World No. 1s,” she said. “So I was like, ‘OK, I have to do it. I have to come back here as World No. 1. Maybe that’s the deal.’ Of course, I have it in mind. It was three tough matches. I’ll keep it in mind as a motivation. If I make it to the finals, I’ll be hungry as ever, and I’ll be focused as never before.”

Luckily for her, the rival who defeated her twice is out of contention. Iga Swiatek was ousted by Jelena Ostapenko, who now leads their head-to-head 6-0.

Sabalenka’s next challenge? A semifinal showdown with No. 5 seed Jasmine Paolini, who stunned Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-3 in the quarterfinal. The World No.1 is getting closer to rewriting her Stuttgart story. But will she finally get her happy ending this time?