Arthur Gea will not forget his first main-draw match at the French Open, but for a reason he never expected.
The 21-year-old was forced to delay part of his clash against Russian Karen Khachanov due to an emergency call of nature. Struggling with physical issues, Gea told the chair umpire during the opening set that he was suffering from stomach issues and needed to exit the court for a bathroom break. However, he was not permitted under the rulebook, and a physio was instead called to court. Prompting a bemused response from the Frenchman.
“I can’t, I can’t,” Gea said on court. “Just explain the situation. I’m going to s*** on the f****** court, I’m sick. I have diarrhoea.”
Eventually, Gea was permitted to leave the court after the end of the sixth game as he rushed towards the toilet. He was able to complete the match but lost 6-3, 7-6(3), 6-0.
“It was really hard, physically, with my health,” he later said in his press conference.
“Overall, it was two really good sets, the first two. The last one was really hard to maintain.”
Elaborating further, Gea said he was given medicine that enabled him to continue playing without needing to go to the toilet again. However, it failed to lessen the pain he experienced.
“I was feeling a bit better, but it was still really bad,” he continued.
“They gave me medicine, but I had pain in the stomach after that. So I don’t know if it was worth it or not.”
It was only the second time Gea had played in the main draw of a major after the Australian Open in January, where he reached the second round before losing to Stan Wawrinka in five sets. Earlier this year, he reached his first and so far only ATP Tour quarter-final at the Montpellier Open.
As for 13th-seeded Khachanov, he has now won 25 matches at the French Open during his career and has never lost in the first round in 10 appearances. A two-time quarter-finalist at the tournament, he will next play late-bloomer Marco Trungelliti. Trungelliti, who made his top 100 debut at the age of 36 earlier in the season, defeated Kyrian Jacquet in straight sets.
