(VIDEO) Sofia Kenin rages at officials at Rome Open after being forced to play in rain, receives heavy booing from crowd
WTA
Sofia Kenin has not had a great time of it in 2024 with the Australian Open champion barely registering a win including at a lower level and it was the crowd that caught the wrath at the Rome Open after her initial protests about playing in the rain.
Kenin was locked in at 3-3 in the opening set against Lucia Bronzetti, but the American was forced despite protestation to play in the rain after asking to be taken off court due to the weather conditions. She threw her towel into her bag after initially storming off court shouting expletives at the officials before holding her arms aloft at the booing coming from the stands.
They booed her mercilessly and when it started to downpour during the rally, she was certainly fired up after winning the point jousting with the crowd as she walked to changeover. Users on social media called Kenin 'unhinged' and said that the crowd was awful and made them root for her in the match. Playing an Italian of course adds to the likely crowd unrest but with play suspended in part this afternoon, they didn't get to see a lot of it anyway before the covers were pulled on.
She went on to win 6-3, 6-2 and will now face Ons Jabeur in the next round after the tantrum on court didn't affect her too much when they returned. Certainly not a moment that Kenin will want to remember though as she let the situation get on top of her and was saved by the rain.
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Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
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