An opening round match at the WTA tournament in Rome has turned ugly, with the chair umpire forced to call for security after becoming concerned about the behaviour of the father of one of the players.
In what was the longest women's match of 2021, Sara Sorribes Tormo outlasted Camila Giorgi in three hours and 51 minutes, 7-6 6-7 7-5.
But the result was overshadowed by Giorgi's father, Sergio, who is also her coach.
The matter came to a head during the second set, when Giorgi became agitated at a number of calls, including a decision to penalise her for a time violation on serve.
A discussion with umpire Morgane Lara ensued, with Sergio intervening as things became heated and a supervisor was called for.
It was after this exchange that Lara was heard calling the tournament office for back-up.
"If it's possible for you to stay around because Giorgi's father is very mad, and I would like to have someone," she said.
Giorgi rallied to take the second set in a tie-breaker, but blew a 4-0 third set lead, a late surge handing Sorribes Tormo the victory, and setting up a second round match with Aryna Sabalenka.
The dust-up comes just days after both Caroline Garcia and Sofia Kenin sacked their respective fathers as their coach.
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from WWOS https://wwos.nine.com.au/tennis/camila-giorgi-father-sergio-umpire-calls-for-security-rome-wta/94890dfa-ab13-4421-b45a-1a264578c6d9
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