Aldila Sutjiadi and Miyu Kato were defaulted from their French Open doubles match against Sorribes Tormo and Marie Bouzkova on Sunday afternoon.
Sutjiadi and Kato were defaulted after Kato lightly struck a ball to the opposite end of the court between points. In a terrible stroke of luck, it hit a ballgirl and drove her to tears. The chair umpire initially issued a warning, but–with Sorribes Tormo and Bouzkova protesting that it should be a default–the supervisor was called to the court. Following a discussion, a default was in fact the result.
In the aftermath of the incident, Sorribes Tormo and Bouzkova have been getting crucified in the media (especially on social media) for their actions contributing to what many consider to be an incorrect decision.
“First of all, what happened yesterday is not easy,” Sorribes said following her singles loss. “For Marie and for me, it’s complicated to see what people are saying about it. We reported to the referee of the match that the ballperson was crying. And since he had not seen what had happened, we told him. For the rest, it was the supervisor who took the decision. That’s all I have to say about it.
“I didn’t open my Instagram. Those who criticize weren’t on the court yesterday. The people who whistled at me today weren’t there, either. The court 14 audience yesterday understood why they were disqualified. The rule is the rule. We saw that the ball sent was much faster than what we can see on the video (and) a small girl (was) crying for 20 minutes.
“I tried to put all that out (of my mind) and compete today, being focused, because I really think we didn’t do anything wrong. That’s why it hurts me that we are being [criticized for doing something wrong] when for me it was not the case at all.”
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