Tense moment at WTA 1000 Montreal tonight between Sakkari and Collins. I agree with Collins here--the officials need to be way stricter on players recklessly smacking the ball and throwing racquets into the stands. Should be no looking the other way when that happens.
(VIDEO) "Shut your mouth": Tense moment between Collins and Sakkari during match at Canadian Open
WTAFriday, 11 August 2023 at 10:46
A tense moment occurred between Danielle Collins and Maria Sakkari during their match at the National Bank Canadian Open (Omnium Banque Nationale) in Montreal, with Collins telling Sakkari "shut your mouth".
World No. 48 Collins faced off against eighth seed Sakkari in her second round at the WTA 1000 event. The American emerged the surprise victor, winning the match in straight sets 6-4, 6-2.
This comes after Collins' shock victory over former world No. 3 Elina Svitolina in the first round. This means that the 2022 Australian Open finalist will face 2021 US Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez in her next match.
Sakkari hits ball into stands
However, although Collins secured the victory with reasonable ease, the match was far from plain sailing, as the two players entered into an argument over Sakkari's reaction to losing a point.
The Greek player's shot was called out, but Collins had already hit the ball back across the net. When it reached her, Sakkari rage-hit it hard on the ground out of frustration.
The ball then bounced up violently and flew into the stands, but didn't hit anyone. However, Collins was not impressed, asking the chair umpire:
"Did you see that? Did you just see what happened?"
Collins and Sakkari in heated argument
Sakkari was quick to defend herself:
"It didn't even hit - It didn't hit anyone... It was on the ground."
At this point, Collins' temper faltered a little, as the 29-year-old said to her opponent:
"Shut your mouth. Shut your mouth."
The 28-year-old became visibly annoyed at this, responding:
"What is your problem? I didn't hit anyone. I framed the ball and it -"
Collins then interrupted to tell her side of events:
"You hit the ball into the stands, Maria. You almost hit someone."
Sakkari then repeated what she had previously said back across the net, before the chair umpire managed to diffuse the situation.
Fans divided on social media
On social media, fans were divided about the tense moment. Tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg posted a clip of the video with the caption:
"I agree with Collins here--the officials need to be way stricter on players recklessly smacking the ball and throwing racquets into the stands."
However, some had more mixed reactions:
"The officials need to be stricter on such occasions, absolutely. Players often get away with this without even a stern warning.
But it's also not cool to say "shut your mouth" to your opponent like that," wrote one. Meanwhile, another added:
"First of all, she [Sakkari] hit the ball on the ground and not directly at the stands! So we can start reading the rules! Second, the fact that you don't mind Collins' behavior is ridiculous."
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