(VIDEO) Katie Boulter gets into heated argument with umpire in hawkeye controversy at Madrid Open
WTA
Katie Boulter took on Katerina Siniakova at the Madrid Open on Tuesday and although she sealed the win, it also hit headlines as she was embroiled in an argument with the chair umpire over a dodgy line-call.
Boulter's first serve landed well wide of the service box and was not caught by hawkeye. The chair umpire as well as the players noticed it. Play was halted temporarily.
The umpire radioed and got the call corrected although it took a lengthy period of time and the umpire then refused to offer Boulter her first serve when they returned.
“They confirmed the serve was fault and they will send the video on the board now." said the chair umpire. “So, it will be a second serve, it (the Hawkeye) is working now, please continue play.”
“Second serve? How?” Boulter asked.
“Because they confirm that the ball was out,” the chair umpire replied.
“But it’s been like 20 seconds since that came back,” Boulter said. “So how can it be the second serve, that’s ridiculous. It’s not about the call, it's about the time it took to get back (to the video).”
“I think the decision has been made to continue with the second serve." the chair umpire responded.
But after the argument, Siniakova could've just sat tight but showed great sportsmanship awarding the first serve back to Boulter. The rule ordinarily would rule in Boulter's favour as usually when there is a lengthy disruption between the first and second serves due to unforeseen circumstances, the player is awarded the first serve again.
However the umpire refused to acknowledge this time passing. The incident further raises issues surrounding Hawkeye and the authenticity of the line-calls especially a few days after Aryna Sabalenka famously took photos on her phone of the dodgy line call she got.
Great sportsmanship by Siniakova here. Hawkeye didn't catch Boulter's obvious fault so the ump had to sort it out. Took 90 seconds to make the decision and then he told them second serve even after the long delay. Katka stepped up and let Katie have a first serve though 🙌 pic.twitter.com/p0yIQssEVM
— Owen (@kostekcanu) April 22, 2025
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