“Disgusting”: Dan Evans Furious After Being Accused of Cheating at French Open 2020

British No.1 Dan Evans got involved in a heated argument in his first-round doubles match at the French Open 2020. Evans and his Polish partner, Hubert Hurkacz, were facing Dutchman, Matwe Middelkoop, and Brazilian, Marcelo Demoliner, in the opening round.

During the third set, Middelkoop hit a cross-court backhand which was called out and gave Evans and Hurkacz a 5-2 lead. Demoliner and Middelkoop alleged that the ball had hit Evans during the rally. Evans was furious and stormed towards his opponents at the changeover at 5-2, eventually separated by French umpire Arnaud Gabas.

The 2015 Davis Cup champion, Evans termed Middelkoop’s accusations as disgusting and claimed that the Brits were too fair.

“That there is as good as calling me a cheat, which is disgusting. I won’t let that go and that is why I told him. I was pretty angry,” said Evans, who seemed visibly agitated.

Eventually, Evans and his partner toppled their opponents 7-6 (7-2), 3-6, 7-5 after getting embroiled in a furious controversy. The duo will now face No.2 seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos in the second round at Roland Garros.

Kyrgios backs Dan Evans

No stranger to confrontation, the World No.42 Nick Kyrgios took to Twitter to applaud Dan Evans over his on-court row. The Australian has been vocal about the recent happenings at French Open and is known for his bold statements.

“F***ing love Evans haha,” wrote Kyrgios on the social media platform.

The Australian pulled out of the clay-court Grand Slam and is likely to stay home for the rest of the 2020 season. Kyrgios will now feature at the Australian Open 2021 in January.

In the singles draw, Evans lost to Kei Nishikori in an epic five-set thriller and will continue his quest of winning his first-ever singles match at the French Open.