back to article Tennis pro serves up pic of bad French Open line call

Tennis professional Sergiy Stakhovsky has taken a smartphone onto the court at the French Open to photograph the spot where a ball landed, in order to produce evidence an umpire made the wrong call. The incident reportedly took place during the first set of the 101st-ranked male player's first-round loss to French opponent …

COMMENTS

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  1. Winkypop Silver badge
    Facepalm

    He lost the match

    ...and perhaps his dignity.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: He lost the match

      Rules are rules. If the umpire called it wrong, then it should be corrected. If it was your match and the umpire called it wrong, you'd be pissed and try to get it rectified, especially considering the amount of money at stake!

      1. David Cantrell
        FAIL

        Re: He lost the match

        In most sports there is also a rule that the umpire or referee's decision is final even when wrong. While they do sometimes have technology to help them, it's carefully vetted and tested technology, not just some random camera phone. I don't know what the rules are in tennis for dealing with players who argue with the umpire, but in the sports that I care about the player might forfeit the game or even the match.

        1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

          Re: He lost the match

          >In most sports there is also a rule that the umpire or referee's decision is final even when wrong.

          Presumably there is no need to even start cricket matches anymore - just ask the umpire which bookies paid most

      2. Parax
        Meh

        Re: Rules are Rules.

        The rules state that the umpire makes the call, irrespective of whether his call is correct or not. If it were my match I'd be upset, but ultimately I know that arguing is pointless.

        A correction can only come from above the umpire, an appeal could be made to the governing body if it were serious enough.

        Sportball players/fans need to accept that it's not, if the ball crossed the line, but if the umpire says, the ball crossed the line.

      3. Naughtyhorse

        Rules are the Rules

        The umpire is always right, even if he(she)'s wrong.

        He's the final arbiter. line judges and hawkeye exist to assist him, he can choose to ignore or accept that advice.

        guy getting thrashed 6-1 6-4 6-3 needs to stop being such a big baby and take up a sport he's good at.

  2. ChrisInBelgium
    Boffin

    Ball mark?

    I'm 50 and the ball-mark is clear to me? You young (I think?) guys seriously can't see it??

    1. Captain Save-a-ho
      Coat

      Re: Ball mark?

      It has nothing to do with youth and everything to do with a colossal case of don't-give-a-shits.

    2. Ru
      Trollface

      Re: Ball mark?

      It looks a bit like a schooner, I thought.

    3. Richard Scratcher
      Alien

      Re: Ball mark?

      I can see a small mysterious bright object on the red clay. It's probably a shred of plastic material, likely benign.

    4. Alfred

      Re: Ball mark?

      Do you also see the face of Jesus in slices of toast?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Ball mark?

        Do you also see the face of Jesus in slices of toast?

        Yes I do - though that may have more to do with my toaster than anything else.

        http://www.jesustoasters.com/

  3. MrDamage Silver badge
    Holmes

    It would be amusing to see Richard Gasquet*, go through all of the footage of the match, and highlight a number of "bad calls" that turned out in Sergiy's favour.

    *This guy deserves to win the internet for having the name Dick Gasket.

  4. graeme leggett Silver badge

    a new form of theatrics on the court

    He was unlucky on the call, but they say you make your own luck.

    Perhaps if he'd focussed on his own efforts and less on the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune that went on around the game he might have done better.

    Sudden thought: the picture gives no context for line orientation - for all I can tell that ball is definitely out rather than in.

    1. Patrick R
      Holmes

      Re: Line orientation

      It doesn't matter whether the ball touches the inside or outside of the line, as long as if it touches the line, it's good. That's the rules in tennis. And that mark is clearly on the line. That being said, you have to trust the umpire on the fact he'll make such errors in good faith and so on both sides.

      1. Mostly_Harmless Silver badge

        Re: Line orientation

        "as long as if it touches the line, it's good"

        Indeed....as the great Mr McEnroe once put it "Chalk dust! EVERYONE could see there was CHALK DUST!!"

  5. EvanPyle

    >> "I'm old and my eyes don't work"

    http://i.imgur.com/cSZORKC.jpg

    Looks to be not touching the line to me. I assume the left of the photo would be in, or out, I don't care either way.

  6. John G Imrie

    You can not be serious.

    It was much more fun in my day.

    1. Jedit Silver badge
      Headmaster

      Re: You can not be serious.

      You realise that Cyclops and Hawkeye are both developments for which McEnroe pushed very strongly, right? If Hawkeye had existed when he was playing he'd never have been known as the Brat, because he didn't get mad because the calls went against him - he got mad because they were wrong.

      1. fandom

        Re: You can not be serious.

        He got mad because he thought they were wrong, without hawkeyes we have no way of knowing if he was right.

  7. Joshua Sugarman
    Thumb Down

    Reg Journalism Getting Worse?

    Really? You can't see the ball mark?

    I understand The Register likes to cover some interesting happenings over the world, but it is very clear to anyone within the tennis world where the ball mark is (after discussing with a few others as well).

    The player is spot on here and the umpire should not be at the French Open if he can't correct a quite obvious wrong call.

    1. Danny 5
      Thumb Up

      Re: Reg Journalism Getting Worse?

      It's a bit hard to see, but clear enough to be sure that the umpire made a bad call.

      I'm sure that people who are not used to watching tennis on gravel will have a hard time making the call, but people who have played on gravel, or have watched gravel tournaments before will be able to spot it. The umpire should be ashamed if you ask me.

    2. Don Jefe
      Happy

      Re: Reg Journalism Getting Worse?

      It is not an issue of journalistic quality but a one of people not knowing what they're looking at (myself included). To me it looks like Curiosity is painting driving lane lines on Mars.

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    How do you know the mark was from this point?

    Its easy to see a mark but how do you know the mark was from this point?

    1. BristolBachelor Gold badge

      Re: How do you know the mark was from this point?

      Well the way you do it properly is with a thermal imager. The mark will only persist for a small time, and after that all the ground looks the same colour, except the lines.

  9. V 2
    FAIL

    What difference would it have made anyway? Look at the scoreline - he lost in straight sets: 6-1, 6-4, 6-3

  10. Joseph Haig

    The umpire may have made one mistake but, as he lost, Stakhovsky made dozens so he has no room for complaint. That's what I was told by my coach years ago, anyway.

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