Frances Tiafoe expressed frustration after losing to Lorenzo Musetti in the French Open quarterfinals on Tuesday, criticising officials for only issuing a warning when Musetti accidentally hit a line judge with a kicked tennis ball during their match at Court Philippe-Chatrier.
The incident occurred when Musetti, trailing 5-3 in the second set, kicked a ball that struck a female line judge. He received just a warning for the code violation, allowing him to continue playing.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Lorenzo Musetti received a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct after this incident �� <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RolandGarros?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RolandGarros</a> <a href="https://t.co/ted26XaBUv">pic.twitter.com/ted26XaBUv</a></p>— TNT Sports (@tntsports) <a href="https://twitter.com/tntsports/status/1929928898453581859?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 3, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>"I mean, obviously, he did that, and nothing happened. I think that's comical," No. 15 seed Tiafoe said after his 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 loss to No. 8 Musetti. "Nothing happened, so there's nothing really to talk about. Obviously, it's not consistent, so it is what it is."
Musetti defended the incident as unintentional and expressed concern for the line judge's wellbeing.
"Honestly, it was a really unlucky coincidence. I was a little bit, honestly, scared, because I really didn't want to harm (anybody), of course. So I immediately went to the line umpire, and I of course said, 'Sorry, I apologise to everyone,'" Musetti said. "It was right to have a warning, but I think the umpire saw that there was no intention about that, and that's why probably (he) let me continue."
Similar incidents in the past have resulted in player disqualifications, notably at the 2020 US Open when Novak Djokovic was eliminated after accidentally hitting a female line judge in the throat with a ball between games.
The match highlighted ongoing debates about officiating at Roland-Garros, where human line judges are still used instead of electronic line-calling systems common at other major tournaments.
Tiafoe also disputed several line calls during the match, including one that television replay showed he was correct about.
The female line judge who was hit continued to officiate throughout the match.
Despite winning the second set after the incident, Tiafoe ultimately lost as Musetti claimed the final two sets to advance to his first Roland-Garros semifinals.
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