Denmark’s Clara Tauson feels she lost a key point due to a wrong decision made by the match official during her first round match at the US Open.
14th-seeded Tauson fell 6-3, 2-6, 7-6(11-9) to Alexandra Eala, who is the first Philippine player to win a Grand Slam main draw singles match in the Open Era. The controversy took place during the deciding set when the Dane was serving for the match at 5-4. At 15-30, Tauson felt her opponent returned the ball before it had crossed onto her side of the court, which is a violation of the rules. Should this occur, she would have been awarded the point.
However, umpire Kader Nouni sided with Eala in the argument after reviewing the point on his screen and said her racket didn’t cross the net prematurely.
“It was definitely the wrong decision. My coach and physiotherapist say the same thing, and my coach (Kasper Elsvad, ed.) always tells me if I’m wrong.” Flashscore quoted Tauson as saying afterwards.
“It was a wrong decision. I don’t know how it’s possible when the referee can see it on video. Maybe the referee felt pressure because the whole stadium was supporting her; I don’t know.”
Elaborating further when speaking to Danish reporters, Tauson said the incident wasn’t the reason why she lost the match. She also added that she was suffering from a back issue during the later stages of the match.
“That’s not why I lost. That shouldn’t be the subject of a three-hour match. I played really badly beforehand, but that didn’t help. I made a double fault right after,” she said.
Meanwhile, Eala’s latest triumph comes during what has been a breakout year for the 20-year-old, who won the US Open girls title three years ago. Earlier this season, she reached her first WTA 1000 semi-final in Miami and was then runner-up in Eastbourne. She is currently ranked 75th in the world but has been as high as 56th in the standings.
“It was so difficult,” Eala said of her latest win.
“She [Tauson] is a huge player – definitely not an easy draw for a first round but I’m so happy that I could dig deep.
“I was thinking I had to push the limit, physically and mentally.”
Eala will next play either Cristina Bucsa or Claire Liu, who are both unseeded in the tournament. She is in the same section as Aryna Sabalenka but would only play her if they both make it through to the last 16.
