Coco Gauff’s Legendary American Coach Calls Out US Open Chair Umpire for Her ‘Beyond Ridiculous’ Decision after Emotions Flared up in a High-Octane R1 Battle

With the 2023 US Open in motion, controversies have also started to swirl around. Coco Gauff, who had a tough time in the opening fixture of her home Grand Slam, may be going through a similar case. The 19-year-old tennis prodigy played her first match against Germany’s Laura Siegemund. The match lasted for 3 sets and Coco had the final laugh.

However, it was a tactical gameplay from her German counterpart that stole the show. But her act did pave the way for some backlash as Coco Gauff’s coach, Brad Gilbert, slammed her for trying to change the momentum of the game. Although it did not work in her favor and she eventually ended up losing the match, it was her attempts that brought out the worst in Brad Gilbert.

Brad Gilbert slams Coco Gauff’s opponent for time-wasting

Tempers flared at the US Open as rising tennis star Coco Gauff accused her opponent, Laura Siegemund, of employing deliberate delay tactics between points, causing her to lose focus and momentum. Gauff’s frustration grew as Siegemund consistently pushed the boundaries of the time allowed between serves.

The American initially kept her grievances in check, but the mounting delays prompted her to question the chair umpire’s leniency towards the German player’s actions. Known for his strategic insights, Gilbert took to Twitter to express his astonishment at the umpire’s reluctance to enforce time violations despite Siegemund’s repeated delays. Gilbert, rarely prone to vent on social media, called the situation “beyond ridiculous.”

“I don’t like to vent too often, was so surprised that umpire would not call a time violation when the player was consistently not having a toss in the air well past zero sometimes 10-15 seconds past after 3 ball rally was beyond ridiculous, finally a time violation in 3rd set,” tweeted Gilbert showing his frustration while pointing straight at Siegemund.

The incident underscores the significance of consistent and equitable enforcement of rules in maintaining the integrity of the game. As the US Open progresses, players and fans alike hope for a fairer and smoother competition, where each player’s adherence to time regulations is vigilantly monitored and upheld by the officials.

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However, this has not been the first incident in which the player has been accused of time wasting. Prominent players like Novak Djokovic and others have also used the same trick to break the concentration of their opponents.

Novak Djokovic has also been involved in long breaks in between the matches

There have been many instances when players have tried to take certain breaks to break the flow of the match. The same thing was done by Novak Djokovic as well when he asserted to take a 7-8 minute toilet break during the final of Wimbledon this year against Carlos Alcaraz. This also led to some backlash as the fans were not happy after the Serb’s long break.

However, the break seemed to work, and he easily won the 4th set of the match before losing the 5th.

Thus, the breaks taken by a player can sometimes result in a change of momentum for a player. Laura also tried to do the same thing. However, it did not end up well for the German as she lost the match and had to bear the brunt of some backlash from Coco’s coach as well.

Also read: Just Days After Giving Herself a Voguish Makeover, Coco Gauff Aims to Step Back and Replicate the Iconic Style of Idol Serena Williams