Third-ranked Alexander Zverev was thrown out of the Mexican Open for violently smashing his racket on the umpire’s chair moments after losing a doubles match.
The incident took place after Zverev and Marcelo Melo lost to Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara 6-2, 4-6, 10-6 on Tuesday night in Acapulco.
Zverev struck the umpire’s chair three times, sat for a moment, then got back up and yelled at the umpire that he “destroyed the whole (expletive) match” and struck the chair once more with his racket as the umpire climbed down. The umpire had pulled his feet back at one point for fear of being hit.
Minutes earlier, Zverev had received a code violation after yelling and swearing in protest of a shot that was ruled in, setting up match point. Glasspool then ended the match with an ace.
“Due to unsportsmanlike conduct at the conclusion of his doubles match on Tuesday night, Alexander Zverev has been withdrawn from the tournament in Acapulco,” the ATP said on Twitter early Wednesday.
The 24-year-old German was the defending champion in the singles. The ATP website shows that his second-round opponent, Peter Gojowczyk, has been given a walkover.
As the crowd booed, Zverev handed his damaged racket to a child in the front row.
Earlier, Daniil Medvedev continued his pursuit of the No. 1 ranking with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Benoit Paire to move into the second round.
The 26-year-old Russian can overtake Novak Djokovic for the top spot in the men's rankings if he wins the title here.
Medvedev, who won the 2021 US Open and was a runner-up to Rafael Nadal last month at the Australian Open, is playing in Mexico for the first time.
“It’s not easy to come back after some rest and some time off competition,” said Medvedev, who rallied from a break down in the second set. “I managed to fight until the end against a very tough opponent and I’m happy that I managed to win.”
He next plays Pablo Andujar, who beat Alex Hernandez 6-0, 6-1.
If Medvedev wins this tournament, or if he reaches the Acapulco final and Djokovic does not win the title at Dubai, he will become the first player other than Djokovic, Nadal, Roger Federer or Andy Murray to hold the top spot since 2004.
He said he's thinking about the milestone, but acknowledged that it might not happen next week.
“I know that in the next three tournaments it can be a possibility and that's why I’m going to try to do this, because it's not a dream anymore, it's a goal," he said. "And I will try to play well in the next three tournaments to achieve it.”
The likely biggest challenge for Medvedev in Mexico could be fourth-seeded Nadal, who opened with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Denis Kudla.
Nadal, who has won titles in Acapulco in 2005, ‘13 and ’20, next faces Stefan Kozlov on Wednesday.
