Reilly Opelka was competing against Cameron Norrie in the round of 16 tie at the Dallas ATP 500 event. The American tennis player had lost the first set, but later won the second set in a tiebreaker.
The incident happened in the third set when Opelka was serving for the match. When the American was going through his service motion, a heckler from the crowd started shouting at Opelka, trying to disrupt his service rhythm.
The 27-year-old cursed out the spectator before umpire Greg Allensworth issued a point penalty to Opelka for an audible obscenity, handing Norrie a chance to break back.
The American giant immediately went to discuss the situation with Allensworth, who obviously did not revert his decision. The American player was fuming, but he was able to serve out the match, winning 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4.
Reilly Opelka may face sanctions for his comments
Reilly Opelka may face disciplinary action following his post-match remarks against chair umpire Greg Allensworth. The American player labeled Allensworth as the “worst ref on tour,” in the post match interview.
Opelka was penalized for using foul language while addressing an audience member, claiming that the unidentified fan was persistently and intentionally disrupting his serve.
After the match concluded, Opelka expressed his disappointment with the umpire Greg Allensworth, insisting that he failed to intervene and stop the fan from interrupting the play.
“Worst ref on tour,” Opelka addressed. “He’s real bad. Almost changed the outcome of that match just because he doesn’t really know what he’s doing. And he got emotional when we were arguing. He didn’t tell (the fan) to shut up? He was doing it for like three points. He didn’t do his job, so I had to tell him, ‘Get out of here.’
Opelka hopes the ATP would take disciplinary actions against Greg Allensworth, as he believes that the umpire nearly cost him a spot in the quarter-finals.
