Tennis Channel commentator and ATP board member Justin Gimelstob was arrested on suspicion of felony battery on Halloween. Gimelstob allegedly attacked and beat venture capitalist Randall Kaplan, hitting him in the head and on the face over and over while shouting, “I’m going to f—— kill you.” Kaplan is a friend of Gimelstob’s estranged wife.
Lleyton Hewitt responded to the allegations by posting the following on Twitter:
The @ATPWorldTour must lead by example and do something about this. pic.twitter.com/EuTXwHbJOS
— Lleyton Hewitt (@lleytonhewitt) November 23, 2018
John Isner, with whom Gimelstob still works on a part-time basis, came to his fellow American’s defense earlier this week while taking a shot at Hewitt.
“Of course Justin is very close to me, as a friend and as a coach,” Isner explained. “But even if he wasn’t, at the current time I would still support him because he’s innocent until proven guilty. We’ll know the facts soon enough. It might not be a popular opinion, but as of now I have to give Justin benefit of doubt.
“I don’t think [Gimelstob] should take a leave right now. We don’t know the facts yet. Hewitt doesn’t know the facts, either. He’s the guy who was involved in his own nasty situation with James Blake. I’m not calling for his head or for him to step down from working with Tennis Australia, (but) he’s being arrogant.”
Isner was referencing an incident between Hewitt and Blake at the 2001 U.S. Open. The Aussie, 20 years old at the time, made racially-charged comments while arguing with the chair umpire during a second-round showdown.
“Look at him (the linesman) and tell me what the similarity is (with Blake),” Hewitt quipped. “I want him off the court. I’ve only been foot-faulted at one end. Look at what he’s done.”
Gimelstob has taken a leave of absence from the Tennis Channel. The ATP player council, led by Novak Djokovic, will discuss Gimelstob’s status on the board sometime this week.
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